Atziri Cruz , Victor Cruz's daughter, embraces family friend Erin Palmer at the Washington County Courthouse in Hillsboro, Ore., on Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025. Family, friends and some local officials held a press conference demanding the release of Cruz, who they say was unlawfully detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement earlier that month.
Saskia Hatvany / OPB
Federal immigration authorities released a longtime Hillsboro resident from a detention facility Friday, according to U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici’s office.
Victor Cruz was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in a high-profile incident Oct. 14. Democratic political leaders, his family and his attorney have all said Cruz is lawfully in the United States, and that it’s not clear why ICE took him across state lines to a detention facility in Tacoma, Washington.
Late last month, an immigration judge denied bail for Cruz, but a federal district court judge overruled that decision Friday and released Cruz on bond, according to Bonamici’s office.
“It is unacceptable that ICE continues to terrorize communities and tear families apart. I will do everything I can to hold those responsible accountable,” the Democratic lawmaker said in a press release.
She described meeting with Cruz at the Tacoma facility before he was released on bond, calling him a “well-respected grandfather with legal work authorization and a pending visa claim.”
Bonamici, a representative for Oregon’s 1st Congressional District, said she was “grateful that his wrongful detention has come to an end.”
Last month, she joined Democratic Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley in sending a letter to Cammilla Wamsley, the director of ICE’s Seattle Field Office, demanding Cruz’s release. The lawmakers’ letter states that “during his arrest, Mr. Cruz was fully shackled — wrists, ankles, and waist,” despite having a fractured foot and a heart condition requiring a pacemaker.
A supporter of Victor Cruz holds a photo of the Hillsboro resident on Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025, in Hillsboro, Ore. Cruz was detained by ICE in early October, during a surge in ICE arrests in the Hillsboro area.
Saskia Hatvany / OPB
Cruz’s family and friends have previously said that ICE told Cruz during his detainment that they were looking for another person with the same name who had a record of driving under the influence. In an Oct. 20 statement to the media, the family and friends said Cruz presented the agents with his identification and a valid work permit.
A spokesperson for ICE said in a statement Monday that “no one was arrested by mistake.”
“ICE will continue to arrest illegal aliens who have no right to be in this country,“ according to the statement. ”The fact of the matter is those who are in our country illegally have a choice—they can leave the country voluntarily or be arrested and deported.”
Cruz’s arrest was among the first in a surge in immigration enforcement action across Washington County. This month, Hillsboro and the county set aside a combined $400,000 to help communities impacted by immigration arrests.
The move follows at least 135 reported arrests by immigration enforcement in the county in October, according to the Portland Immigration Rights Coalition. This number accounts for nearly half the 329 arrests made throughout the state in October.
His attorney, Julia Braker, previously told OPB that she and fellow immigration attorneys have seen the agency’s practices change under the Trump administration to target people based on their perceived race, ethnicity, type of work or language they speak.
This shift aligns with a recent ruling from the Supreme Court, which allows immigration agents to stop and detain people based on these traits.
OPB’s Holly Bartholomew contributed to this report.
