Humberto Cantero was stopped while driving to work in February in Monmouth County
ELIZABETH -- Huddled in the pouring rain outside the Elizabeth Detention Center on Tuesday, relatives of a Roselle man awaiting an immigration hearing inside told reporters he should be let free.
Advocates say Humberto Cantero, an unauthorized immigrant, has been detained at the facility since February, when Marlboro police pulled him over on his way to work and issued him summonses for driving without a license and an active registration.
"He's not a deliquent," Cantero's wife, Araceli, told reporters in Spanish. "He's here for his family. He's a hardworking person."
Cantero, 34, had an arrest warrant for non-support, or failing to provide for a dependent, out of Union County when Marlboro officers pulled him over for a traffic violation, Chief Bruce Hall said. The officers brought Cantero to Monmouth County Jail to await pickup by Union County authorities, Hall said.
Monmouth County has a memorandum of agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement for certain county sheriff's officers to perform immigration duties.
Roselle, where Cantero lives with his family, recently became the first sanctuary city in Union County.
Unauthorized immigrants like Cantero became higher priorities for deportation last month, when the Department of Homeland Security said the agency would target an immigrant accused of any crime, including traffic violations.
An immigration judge denied Cantero bond at his hearing Tuesday, said Sara Cullinane, executive director of the immigration advocacy group Make the Road New Jersey. She said Cantero will stay in custody and has another court date scheduled for May 7.
Cantero was driving to his construction job when police stopped him, Cullinane said. He has four children, who range in age from 5 to 15.
"The only thing we want is for him to be free so he can continue to support his family," his cousin, Ramiro, said.
A spokesman for ICE did not immediately respond to questions about Cantero's arrest and detention.
The Elizabeth Detention Center, which is run by the private prison-management company Corrections Corporation of America, has seen other demonstrations in recent months.
Several hundred people gathered outside the beige, one-story building in January to protest President Donald Trump's executive order on immigration.
At a rally in February, five protesters were arrested in an act of civil disobedience when they sat in the street outside the detention center and refused to stand up.
Marisa Iati may be reached at miati@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @Marisa_Iati or on Facebook here. Find NJ.com on Facebook.