Marcos Gaspar-Da Silva, a Brazilian national who has been married to a U.S. citizen for three years and has filed a green card application, spent almost seven months in ICE detention before an immigration judge granted him lawful permanent resident status earlier this month. Gaspar-Da Silva, who has been reunited with his family since mid-August, said he is still grappling with the psychological toll of the experience, telling the Portland Press Herald after his release, "I was waiting for some emotions, but I don't have emotions.” He has repeatedly described conditions at the ICE detention facilities where he was held as unsanitary and overcrowded. He told reporters that detainees faced limited access to basic hygiene, poor-quality food and drinking water, and inadequate medical care during his months in custody.
A Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson told Newsweek in an email Thursday, “The claims Gaspar-Da Silva made regarding detention conditions are greatly exaggerated,” adding, “ICE maintains detention standards that are higher than those of most U.S. prisons holding actual U.S. citizens.” Gaspar-Da Silva’s case comes as President Donald Trump has pledged to launch the largest mass deportation operation in U.S. history. The administration's enforcement efforts have led to the detention of immigrants across a range of legal statuses, including some valid green card holders and visa holders, prompting legal challenges and criticism from immigration advocates. Administration officials have said the enforcement efforts are necessary to uphold immigration laws, arguing that previous administrations did not enforce them properly.
Newsweek has reached out to his wife, Alessia, for comment via GoFundMe on Thursday. Gaspar-Da Silva, a Brazilian asylum seeker, was detained by ICE officers early on January 20 while driving to work in Portland. According to his wife, he had stopped to pick up a worker when federal agents pulled over his vehicle and took both men into custody.
DHS did not reply to Newsweek’s question inquiring about the reason for his detention. Newsweek could not locate any criminal record for Gaspar-Da Silva. After his arrest, Gaspar-Da Silva was moved between detention facilities in several states, including Massachusetts and Arizona.
Gaspar-Da Silva, 33, came to the United States from Brazil in 2021 after receiving threats that he said stemmed from his work as a civil attorney, according to his wife and court filings cited by local media. His wife said on a GoFundMe page established on his behalf that he fled after “facing fear for his life and harm.” In 2019, as an attorney, he took on a land dispute case involving competing ownership claims and later said he was threatened by individuals connected to the matter. In a sworn affidavit submitted with his asylum application, he wrote: "I feared that they would finally carry out their threats and kill me,” the Portland Press Harald reported.
After he left Brazil, relatives were targeted in violent attacks, according to Gaspar-Da Silva. He has said one family member was shot in the face and another was later killed, incidents he cited as reinforcing his fears about returning to the country. Alessia stated in the GoFundMe, “Marcos had a credible fear screening and our government, found it positive, he complied with the legal process, received parole.
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