New Jersey Pastor Held in ICE Detention During Holy Week After Being Stopped on Delivery Route

A Colombian-born pastor with no criminal record is spending Holy Week inside an immigration detention center in New Jersey, separated from his wife and three daughters. His case is raising serious questions about how ICE enforcement intersects with religious communities, due process, and the rights of immigrants with active legal cases.

Yeison Cortes Vasquez, 46, serves as a pastor at The Gathering Place Church in New Jersey. He has lived in the United States for more than a decade, originally coming from Colombia. On March 20, ICE agents stopped him while he was working a delivery route in Newark. He has been held at the Delaney Hall Detention Center ever since.

His family says he has an active asylum case currently moving through the legal system. He has no criminal history — not an arrest, not a charge of any kind.

A Family Left Behind

Back home, his wife and three daughters are managing on their own. The emotional toll on the children has been significant.

"His daughters are shaken up. One of them doesn't want to eat. She's losing her appetite," said Rev. Dr. Gabriel Salguero, President of the National Latino Evangelical Coalition.

For the congregation at The Gathering Place Church, the detention of their pastor has been both a shock and a source of grief. Church members describe Cortes Vasquez as a pillar of their community — someone who has consistently shown up for others during their most difficult moments.

"Pastor Yeison has walked with our people through their hardest moments — praying with families, lifting up the broken, and pointing us to Christ," said Rev. Enid Almanzar, Chairwoman of the National Latino Evangelical Coalition.

Denied a Bible for Nearly a Week

Even inside the detention facility, Cortes Vasquez has reportedly continued ministering to fellow detainees, offering comfort and prayer to those around him. But for close to a week, he did so without access to a Bible. When church leaders tried to deliver one to him at the facility, they were turned away. He was eventually allowed to obtain one through the detention center's internal purchasing system.

The timing — just as Christians around the world prepare to observe Holy Week, one of the most significant periods in the Christian calendar — has deepened the sense of distress among his supporters.

"To know that he was denied access to a Bible for nearly a week, especially as we enter Holy Week, is deeply painful and troubling for our entire church family. We are holding fast to our faith while calling for compassion, dignity, and the protection of our most fundamental freedoms for citizens and immigrants alike — especially our right to worship without government interference," said Rev. Almanzar.

The National Latino Evangelical Coalition has been vocal in its response, framing the situation as a matter of both religious freedom and human dignity.

"The moral decline of beginning to detain ministers during Holy Week is heartbreaking," said Rev. Dr. Salguero.

The coalition announced it will hold a press conference Thursday outside the Newark detention facility, calling for Cortes Vasquez's release. His supporters say they will continue pushing for his freedom through both public advocacy and legal channels.