Wife of US Coast Guard member arrested over expired visa after security check for military housing

By Michael Biesecker and Lolita C Baldor Associated Press WASHINGTON The wife of an active-duty Coast Guardsman was arrested earlier this week by federal immigration functionaries inside the family residential section of the U S Naval Air Station at Key West Florida after she was flagged in a routine safety check functionaries revealed Saturday The spouse is not a member of the Coast Guard and was detained by Homeland Safeguard Investigations pursuant to a lawful removal order declared Coast Guard spokesperson Lt Cmdr Steve Roth in a comment confirming Thursday s on-base arrest The Coast Guard works closely with HSI and others to enforce federal laws including on immigration According to a U S official the woman s work visa expired around and she was marked for removal from the United States a scant years later She and the Coast Guardsman were married early this year mentioned the official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an enforcement situation Though the Trump administration has made immigration arrests a top priority for federal law enforcement it did not straightaway appear the on-base arrest of the military spouse was part of a broader sweep The official commented that when the woman and her Coast Guard husband were preparing to move into their on-base housing on Wednesday they went to the visitor control center to get a pass so she could access the Key West installation During the routine defense screening required for base access the woman s name was flagged as a difficulty Base personnel contacted the Naval Criminal Investigative Function which looked into the matter stated the official NCIS and Coast Guard assurance personnel got permission from the base commander to enter the installation and then went to the Coast Guardsman s home on Thursday the official disclosed They were joined by personnel from Homeland Prevention Investigations a unit within Immigration and Customs Enforcement HSI eventually took the spouse into custody and the official reported they believe she is still being detained Agents did not provide the name of the country she is from The Coast Guard referred questions about the woman s identity immigration status and charges to ICE which did not respond to a request for comment on Saturday The Department of Homeland Prevention also did not respond to a request for comment The husband of the arrested woman is a Coast Guardsman assigned to the USCGC Mohawk a -foot-long cutter based at Key West The couple was moving into U S establishment housing at the nearby Naval Air Station Related Articles Lawyers say that ICE has deported the mother of a baby and a -year-old who is a U S citizen US judge temporarily stops west Texas immigrant deportations under Alien Enemies Act Goldberg We need proof of life for the makeup artist Trump sent to El Salvador Roth Pope Francis was a setting hero Trump reign gives his words extra meaning ICE is reversing the termination of legal status for international students around the US An online database that tracks ship movements shows the Mohawk has been docked in its home port since mid-March A March media release says the ship had in the last few days returned following a -day deployment to the Eastern Pacific Ocean on a mission to intercept shipments of illegal drugs In a comment the Navy mentioned that it fully cooperated with federal law enforcement functionaries on this matter We take shield and access at naval installations seriously Associated Press writer Rebecca Santana contributed to this analysis