This week, a deportation flight carrying several dozen Venezuelan nationals, including 39-year-old Jose Barco, departed from a U.S. immigration detention center in South Texas to Venezuela. Barco is a decorated U.S. Army veteran who served twice in Iraq, where he sustained a traumatic brain injury from an explosion that led to him receiving a Purple Heart. Originally from Venezuela, Barco’s family left the country when he was four years old, after his father fled Cuba due to political persecution. In the detention center in Texas, younger inmates referred to Barco as “Cuba.”
Barco’s journey to his current predicament involves battlefield trauma, bureaucratic mishaps, and a serious criminal offense. Anna Stout, a former mayor of Grand Junction, Colorado, is aiding Barco’s family. She described his situation as “incredibly complex and tragic,” citing failures of the U.S. military to address his needs and the unfortunate alignment of his parole with changing immigration policies.
Barco encountered an unexpected complication when he arrived in Honduras en route to Venezuela. The Venezuelan authorities refused him entry, questioning the authenticity of his birth certificate and his Cuban-sounding accent, and noting his lack of knowledge about his Venezuelan national identity card number.
Currently, Barco is back in a U.S. detention facility in Port Isabel, Texas, and uncertain about where he might be accepted. His wife, Tia Barco, has expressed fear and frustration over the possibility of her husband being sent to Venezuela, advocating that a decorated veteran should not face such circumstances.
Barco’s military service began in 2004 with a unit based in Fort Carson, Colorado. During a patrol in Iraq, a car explosion injured him, resulting in burns and a traumatic brain injury, which initially went unrecognized. Despite the injuries, Barco was determined to return to Iraq, foregoing a potential medical retirement from the Army that would have included a pension and healthcare benefits.
After returning home in 2007, Barco’s condition worsened, and he was prescribed multiple medications without improvement. In 2008, Barco was convicted of attempted first-degree murder following a shooting incident, which he claims he does not remember.
Following 15 years in prison, Barco was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) upon his release. Due to a lost chain of custody for his citizenship application, Barco was ordered deported to Venezuela, a decision he decided not to appeal, feeling disillusioned.
His supporters, including Ryan Krebbs, a former Army medic, are advocating for Barco, hoping for a potential pardon from Colorado’s Governor or relocation to a place like Mexico where he can access better healthcare. The challenges Barco faces, including unresolved citizenship and legal status, underscore difficulties faced by noncitizen veterans in the U.S. military, many of whom find themselves entangled in complex legal and immigration issues.
