In July 2025, following reports At The Morning Call, a news site based in Alontown, Pennsylvania, a claim, widespread online, that immigration and customs law enforcement (ICE) arrested Louis Leon, an 82-year-old Grandpa from Almontene as he tried to replace his green card in US citizenship and immigration services (USCIS) (USCIS) (USCIS).
A summary (archived) from the Morning Call report had more than 6.5 million views at the time of writing.
The claim also spread to Facebook (S)archived), Instagram (S)archived), Reddit (S)archived) and Tiktok (S)archived). Snopes readers also wrote to ask if the claim is true.
However, we could not independently confirm the details of Leon’s alleged deportation, as reported by The Morning Call. Following the publication of the history of Leon, the Guatemalan Institute of Migration, the Guatemalan Immigration Service, said (archives) in a statement that no persons who respond to the “name, age and nationality” in reports on Leon’s alleged deportation have not entered Guatemala. Attempts to contact Leon’s family to confirm the details reported were unsuccessful.
We reached for ICE to ask if his agents arrested and deported Leon on the reported dates. We also turned to the Chile Embassy in Guatemala to ask if he could confirm whether Leon, who was reported from Chile, was in Guatemala and how he got there. We expect the answers to our inquiries.
Ice told Morning Call on July 18 that an investigation into Leon’s alleged deportation continues.
The timeline
According to a report by The Morning Call, citing Leon Natalie’s granddaughter, Ice agents arrested Leon on June 20, 2025 at a USCIS office on 41st Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Leon had gone to the office to replace a lost permanent residence card or a green card. The card allows the holder to live and work permanently in the United States, but does not provide them with US citizenship.
Natalie told the arrested call agents in the morning and kept their wife in the office for hours. No one in the Leon family knew where he was. A few days later, a woman contacted Leon’s family, claiming to be an immigration lawyer and said she knew where Leon was, but refused to tell the family.
On July 9, 20 days after the reports of the ice officials, Leon arrested the same woman contacted Leon’s family and said he was dead, according to The Morning Call.
On this date, Michele Downing of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, joined several other speakers in Lehig County Commissioners meeting Denunciation of actions to apply ice immigration in the county.
Downing said (time code 01:24:13) that Leon was her grandfather to her friend.
His name is Louis and he came here from Chile. He was born there in 1942 and he escaped from political torture with his wife and young children to come here in 1987. Four children and 16 grandchildren later, about a month ago, my friend’s grandfather put his green card. So, when immigration called him to come and take his new green card, he went with his 79-year-old wife to take her, and they were both detained. She was released seven hours later and he was never seen again and never had as much as a ticket to move throughout his life. Despite reporting medical conditions, and although I received an immigration lawyer with every penny they saved, this morning I received a phone call from immigration and customs that he was found died at 4 o’clock this morning.
It was unclear where Downing received his information about Leon, which varied slightly from the morning call. Downing said Leon is 83 years old, while the morning call reports Leon’s age as 82 years old. Both were possible if Leon was born in 1942, as Downing said. Snops turned to Downing to ask how he knew about Leon and would be updated if we received an answer.
Downing also added details that were not included in the Morning Call report, claiming that she personally spoke with “immigration and customs” that confirmed Leon’s death. According to The Morning Call, the woman who told Leon’s family that he was dead claims to be an immigration lawyer. We asked ICE to confirm whether any of his agents or lawyers called the Leon or Downing family on July 9th.
Morning’s call said in his article on July 20 that Leon told his family that he had arrived in Guatemala on July 1. If true, this will further be questioned on Leon’s family on July 9 that he died, as Leon would be out of the ICE arrest by that date.
Nevertheless, until July 20, Leon’s brother in Chile is located at Leon at a Guatemala City Hospital, who treated him for pneumonia, and through Chilean state contact confirmed with an unidentified US employee that Leon arrived in Guatemala through a Mine Center.
According to The Morning Call, the hospital in question cannot confirm whether Leon is one of his patients because of confidential concerns. Leon’s family will travel to see him in Guatemala, a report on July 20 said.
Snops could not independently confirm Leon’s route to Guatemala. Leon did not appear in the online ICE detainee locator system by searching for a name. However, since Leon has left the United States, Ice probably has removed its information from the system.
In February 2025, President of Guatemala D -R Bernardo Arevalo said during a press conference that his government would receive 40% more flights to deportation of “”National returning, as well as deporting from other nationalities for their last repatriation. ”
However, the Guatemalan Institute of Migration, however said In a statement on July 20, “Guatemala coordinated with the immigration and customs service (ICE) for the acceptance of persons deported by the United States of America, which does not include nationalities in South America.” He also stated that “there is no person to match the name, age and nationality mentioned by the media” who entered the Guatemala on the dates in question, citing reports like the Daily Call.
Deepl.com provided Spanish to English translations to the statement by the Guatemalan Institute of Migration.
Sources:
Green card USCIS. July 8, 2025, https://www.uscis.gov/green-card.
Guat migration. “#Comeniced | Migration Guit,” Facebook, July 20. 2025, https://www.facebook.com/migracryongaate/posts/pfbid02pkwkquququ1sgclxsbs1fwacyo1oelqmesnuick7spmruzdkusht9P6Dzgul.
Online detention locator system. https://locator.ice.gov/odls/#/search. Access to July 21, 2025
“Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Guatemala President Bernardo Arevalo in the joint availability of the press.” The State Department of the United States, https://www.state.gov/secretary-of-state-marco-rubio-and-Guatemalan-president-ernardo-AVALO-JOINT-Press-AVAILability/. Access to July 21, 2025
Sheehan, Daniel Patrick. “Do Ice Ice in the Court of Justice of Lehigh? Protesters say so and demand the law of the county.” Morning call, July 10, 2025, https://archive.ph/oggpv#selection-1339.4-1510.0.
Sheehan, Daniel Patrick and Elizabeth Diornellas. “The Aluenntown grandfather’s family was said to have died in the ice arrest. Then they learned that he was alive – at a hospital in Guatemala, they say.” Morning call, July 18, 2025, https://archive.ph/4wlek#selection-189.4-1480.0.
—. “Update: The family says Almonthown’s grandfather in Guatemala after Ice Arrest. But the country says there are no records for him.” Morning call, July 20, 2025, https://archive.ph/54jv3#selection-189.4-1480.0.