CHINA GROVE, TEXAS — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested Hebert Kaleth Ibarra Castro on June 25, 2025, in China Grove, Texas. The China Grove Police Department stated, "Any further enforcement action was handled by ICE." ICE initiated deportation proceedings following the arrest.

Marisol Pantoj, Hebert Kaleth Ibarra Castro's wife, stated that her husband was arrested while driving. An ICE spokesperson said in a podcast interview that ICE records indicate Hebert Kaleth Ibarra Castro entered the United States illegally at an unknown date and time. Pantoj disputed this, stating that Hebert Kaleth Ibarra Castro entered the U.S. legally with a B-2 visa that expired in 2020. "He came with a B-2 visa when he was 4 years old," Pantoj said. She also said, "He was fleeing violence from (Monterrey) Mexico."

Hebert Kaleth Ibarra Castro's mother wrote in a statement that the family fled their home in Monterrey 16 years ago through a window due to cartel violence. "When I think about my son being in that ICE facility, it brings back painful memories from 16 years ago when we were forced to flee our home in Monterrey through a window because of a very dangerous cartel," she stated.

State Rep. Barbara Gervin Hawkins, who represents the district where Hebert Kaleth Ibarra Castro resides, plans to collaborate with other lawmakers to aid in his release. "These folks are just trying to live their lives," Hawkins said. "We've got kids not going to school, we are really traumatizing our community." U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro also advocated for Hebert Kaleth Ibarra Castro's release through social media. Pantoj stated that she and her husband were working to obtain a green card for him. "The packet itself was 178 pages," Pantoj said.

Pantoj reported that Hebert Kaleth Ibarra Castro performed the national anthem in front of the warden at a South Texas detention facility. "He had said, 'I don't understand why they asked me to sing a song of the land of the free when they chained me up like an animal,'" Pantoj recounted. Hebert Kaleth Ibarra Castro, who is 20 years old, has a hearing scheduled for the week of July 6, 2026.