The wife of Irish father Keith Byrne says he is “caged” in a US jail and extremely depressed.
Distraught Keran Byrne explained her husband has until today, Friday, to sign a passport application which could put him on a plane to Ireland.
She said: “He’s still in shock. He’s being held in a cage basically with no outside contact.
“He’s extremely depressed, I know he feels guilty for what’s happening to the kids and to me. He’s really really sad right now.
“The only information he gets is through an ICE [Immigration and Custom Enforcement] officer and their number one goal is to deport him.
“The deadline for Friday is that he signs a passport application.
“And once that passport application is signed then ICE can apply for his passport which is what they need to put him on a plane to go home.
“He has to sign it legally otherwise he can be charged criminally because it’s a criminal offence to not comply with deportation so he’s basically left with no choice.”
The father-of-three, 37, from Fermoy in Co Cork moved to the States in 2007. The Byrne family have said Keith was living legally but did not have citizenship.
He was on his way to work on the outskirts of Philadelphia last Wednesday morning when he was pulled over.
US immigration officers in unmarked cars arrested him and placed him in Pike County Correctional Facility, a prison in Pennsylvania.
His detention comes amid President Donald Trump’s latest crackdown on illegal immigrants.
However, his wife has insisted Keith was not an “illegal immigrant” or “undocumented.”
Mr Byrne has two previous convictions for possession of cannabis while living in Ireland, which have also added to his struggle with US authorities.
Keran said:“A few years ago our lawyer enquired about Keith’s threat by ICE and they told our lawyer he wasn’t a person of interest.
“He has been here very very documented and trying in every effort honestly to adjust his status.
“Going all the way through the legal system, being upfront and open about his past and it’s just done nothing but hurt the situation.”
Keran urged politicians and the public to get in contact with anyone that could help so her kids could get their father home.
She told RTE One’s Drivetime: “They [kids] know what’s going on. They know that he’s being detained. They know that he is unable to come home and is not allowed.
“I think they’re having a very hard time, they’re very sad. They don’t understand. They miss him, everybody misses him.”
