‘It’s just heartbreaking’: People call for release of immigrant awaiting deportation to the Congo

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – Local politicians and members of Escucha Mi Voz rallied Thursday afternoon for the release of a man detained at the Linn County Correctional Center.

Jose Yugar Cruz came to the United States from Bolivia fleeing torture. According to Iowa Capital Dispatch reporting, he arrived in Arizona in July 2024, surrendered himself to law enforcement, and applied for asylum that October.

After about a year and a half of legal battles while in detention, during which he received a judgment withholding his removal from the U.S., he was released in December 2025.

Early this year, Yugar Cruz was living and working at the Iowa City Catholic Worker House, according to Escucha Mi Voz members. He was most recently detained on April 8.

The rally started in front of the Linn County Courthouse, where leaders and supporters spoke about Yugar Cruz. Participants then marched to the Correctional Center, chanting and singing phrases such as “free Jose now” and “this is for our neighbors who are locked inside.”

Speakers expressed their concerns about “inhumane treatment” and human rights violations. Yugar Cruz has never been to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

His current detention occurred days after the Congolese government said it would receive migrants as part of a deal with the Trump administration’s third-country program.

“I know that with all of the help from you all. I know that we’re going to win. I hope that they will give me freedom because I am not a dangerous person,” Yugar Cruz said in his message, delivered through an interpreter at the event. “They are including me on this flight anyway, so what they are trying to do with me is make me stay in the Congo and I am afraid to go to this country.“

Maureen Vasile, who knows Yugar Cruz through her work with Escucha Mi Voz and the Iowa City Catholic Worker House, said she wants people to understand that he is “an asset” to the community.

“He’s a caring person, it’s just heartbreaking to all of us that they’re doing this to him,” she said.

Escucha Mi Voz members said they would donate money for his legal fees and for financial support when he is sent to the Congo.

Local politicians and clergy also spoke out, saying they don’t want to see someone deported to a place they’ve never been.

Johnson County Supervisor Jon Green called on voters to “challenge” candidates to push to abolish ICE and “prosecute all of these folks for violating people’s human rights.”

Mayor Bruce Teague of Iowa City lead participants in calling out, “we all belong here.”

“I will say this clearly and I will say it loudly and I’ll continue to say it: we should not move forward with deporting with someone to a country where they have never been,” said Mayor Teague. “That calls for pause, it calls for thoughtful consideration and it calls for a reconsideration and commitment to fairness.”

“What has Jose done except ask for freedom from brutality? And he has been given a jail cell in a detention center,” said Reverend Marc Schlegel-Preheim, pastor at First Mennonite Church of Iowa City.

TV9 has reached out to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for comment on Yugar Cruz’s situation.

As of Thursday afternoon, TV9 has yet to receive a response.