She showed up to an immigration meeting in Tampa, then got deported

Tampa community groups and advocates are organizing a demonstration Saturday in support of a Cuban wife and mother who was deported Thursday following an immigration appointment in Tampa.

Heydi Sánchez Tejeda, 44, was arrested following a regularly scheduled check-in at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Tampa on Tuesday morning. Hours later, she was transferred to a jail in Pinellas County. On Wednesday, she was taken to Miami and, by Thursday afternoon, deported along with a group of Cubans on a flight back to the island.

“We’re devastated,” said her husband, Carlos Yuniel Valle, 40.

Sánchez Tejeda entered through the southern border five years ago and was under a temporary stay permit known as the I-220B form, a permit that does not grant a legal status or provide protection from deportation.

Sánchez Tejeda married Valle four years ago.The couple has a 1-year-old daughter.

“It’s terrible. Right now I’m sending clothes, money, something to my wife in Cuba because she has nothing there,” Valle said in a phone interview. “It’s a deep pain. Please bring her back. She’s my wife, she’s the mother of my daughter. I want her back so we can continue with our lives.”

Sánchez Tejeda tried to enter the U.S. through the southern border in 2019 and was placed into the “Remain in Mexico” program, which required asylum seekers to wait in Mexico for their U.S. immigration court hearings.

She waited for two scheduled hearings but missed the second one because she couldn’t leave the border city due to local safety concerns, according to Valle. When she later entered the United States, Sánchez Tejeda was detained for nine months and placed on a deportation list.

During that time, Valle said, she became sick with kidney problems and did not contest the deportation order issued by an immigration judge because of her health. She wasn’t deported right away because Cuba was not accepting deportation flights at the time, Valle said.

Sánchez Tejeda was released with an I-220B form. Two years ago, Valle filed a petition for permanent legal status for his wife, but he said he never received a response from immigration authorities.

Six months ago, Sánchez Tejeda went to an immigration appointment and had no issues. Valle said that this year, his wife’s appointment was scheduled for April 30, but she received a notice saying she needed to show up a week earlier.

Valle said the government should take into account that his wife has no criminal record, works caring for the elderly in their homes, and is a devoted mother who was still breastfeeding their daughter.

“We’re just people working for our child,” he said.

Sánchez Tejeda’s family and supporters will hold a demonstration and press conference in support of the family at 1 p.m. Saturday at 801 N Florida Ave. in Tampa.