Former Venezuelan player working for San Diego Padres is detained by ICE
Padres Minor-League Catching Coach Oswaldo Pirela Held by ICE After Work Trip to Texas
Detained at El Paso Airport
Bharatmorningnews.com – U.S. immigration authorities took into custody a Venezuelan-born baseball coach employed by the San Diego Padres’ farm system after he landed in Texas on a club-related assignment, according to his family. Federal records indicate that Oswaldo Pirela, who serves as a catching instructor within the Padres’ minor-league apparatus, was being kept at a detention facility in El Paso as of Tuesday.
His sister, Daniela Pirela, told The Associated Press that her brother was seized roughly at 5 a.m. on Sunday while passing through an El Paso airport. The Padres maintain a minor-league affiliate in that city, the El Paso Chihuahuas, which explains the work trip.
Family Background and Legal Status
Daniela described her 34-year-old brother as a law-abiding resident who has called the United States home for 12 years. She said he filed an asylum application in 2015 and now resides in Peoria, Arizona, alongside his wife and two children — a 9-year-old and a 4-year-old — both of whom hold U.S. citizenship.
“Since he arrived in this country, the only thing he’s done is follow the rules of this country and do things properly,” Daniela Pirela told The Associated Press.
Playing Career and Organizational Response
Before turning to coaching, Pirela spent a short stretch as a position player, catching in the Texas Rangers’ minor-league ranks.
The Padres issued a brief statement acknowledging awareness of the detention and saying the organization was working to obtain further information. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement had not responded to an emailed request for comment as of Tuesday.
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