U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will move forward with the deportation of an Ohio man who is the only provider and caregiver of a 6-year-old paraplegic boy.
According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, ICE said that Yancarlos Mendez, 27, is "ineligible for any agency relief" and that it "will move forward with his repatriation to his home country.”
Mendez entered the country legally under the Visa Waiver Program, but overstayed his visit by more than two years. Under the program, recipients waive their right to go before an immigration judge and may be detained before deportation.
He has dual citizenship in Spain and the Dominican Republic, according to the Enquirer.
Mendez is the sole provider and caregiver of 6-year-old Ricky Solis, who was paralyzed in a car crash in February 2017, the Enquirer reported.
Mendez has lived with the boy's mother, Sandra Mendoza, since 2014, and, according to the Enquirer, is the only father figure Ricky has known.
After the car accident that left Ricky Solis paralyzed, Mendoza and Mendez underwent medical training before the boy could be released from the hospital.
Mendez had been sentenced to 30 days in county jail after he was stopped in November for driving without a valid license — his second such offense, according to the Enquirer. After he completed that sentence, he was taken into federal custody.