Utah man wrongfully detained by immigration officials for nearly 50 days, attorney says

MILLCREEK — A Utah man is speaking out after spending nearly 50 days in a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in Texas, despite being a lawful U.S. resident. His attorney says the federal government got it wrong — and taxpayers footed the bill.

Junior Dioses, a Highland High School graduate, small business owner and father of five, was returning from a trip to Peru on April 28 when he was stopped by Customs and Border Protection agents at a Texas airport. What was supposed to be a routine entry turned into a nearly two-month ordeal, with two days spent in custody at the airport and 48 days at an ICE detention facility in Conover, Texas.

"When I was there, I kept thinking every day, 'Why am I here?'" Dioses said.

Legal threshold

Dioses, 39, has lived in the U.S. for over 20 years and holds a valid green card. But immigration officials flagged two prior convictions — a 2006 failure to stop for a police officer and a 2019 disorderly conduct charge — as grounds for deportation.

"Most people when they think of '(deporting) criminals' they don't think of Junior. They think of the guy selling drugs to our kids, that guy (who) murdered someone, that guy (who) engaged in horrific violent behavior," said Dioses' attorney, Adam Crayk. "Permanent residents can be deported … if you do things that under our law qualify for deportable offenses."

However, Crayk, managing partner at Stowell Crayk, said Dioses' previous charges do not meet the legal threshold for deportation under immigration law.

"There's already case law that says these are not crimes involving moral turpitude," Crayk explained. "Had anyone on the government side done the research, they would have known they had inappropriately incarcerated and inappropriately begun deportation proceedings against someone who should have never been in that type of position."

A section of U.S. law states any noncitizen who "is convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude" committed within five to 10 years and sentenced to at least one year in prison is deportable.

According to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Crayk is correct — an "extensive" case law defines moral turpitude as "conduct that shocks the public conscience as being inherently base, vile, or depraved, contrary to the rules of morality and the duties owed between man and man, either one's fellow man or society in general."

Despite filing a motion to terminate deportation proceedings — which the government did not oppose — Dioses remained in custody for an additional seven days, Crayk said. Crayk believes the delay was due to bureaucratic hesitation over a potential appeal that never came.

"He didn't have his green card taken away. He's still a permanent resident and on track to become a citizen," Crayk said. "For Junior to spend 48 days in an immigration custody on charges that were never legitimate."

'Someone who did everything right'

Crayk also raised concerns about the broader implications of the case and the cost of government resources.

"Taxpayer money covered that time. Every single second of that, we paid for," Crayk said. "I like to believe that Utahns value the law, and when things are clearly not what the government is saying that they are, that should outrage people."

Now back in Utah, Dioses is focused on getting back to work and reclaiming lost time with his family — especially with the Fourth of July holiday approaching.

"I just want to spend time with my kids, go to the lake and have fun," he said.

Dioses said he's sharing his story to raise awareness for other immigrants who might find themselves in similar situations.

"This is someone who did everything right," Crayk added. "Many try to say that people shouldn't get due process if they are here unlawfully. Well this is a guy who is here lawfully. This is someone who did things the right way, and we're still doing this against him."

KSL-TV reached out to ICE for information on Dioses' case and did not receive a response.

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