Mather senior heading home to Chicago after being released from immigration detention

A Mather High School senior detained by federal agents with his mother in March is heading back home to Chicago.

Ricardo Navarrete, 18, appeared for a bond hearing in immigration court Tuesday morning and was expected to be released from federal custody by the evening, according to Kelli Fennell, an attorney for the family.

“We’re happy that he is on the way home to be reunited with his family,” Fennell said in an emailed statement.

Immigration agents detained Ricardo and his mother during a routine court appearance for their asylum case back in March. Last week, Liliana Navarrete was one of 18 people released on a writ of habeas corpus by a federal judge in Kentucky.

The fight for their immigration case will continue in the courts in Chicago, their lawyers have said.

Ricardo and Liliana had an active asylum application when they were detained, and neither has a criminal record, according to the family’s lawyers. The pair arrived in Chicago in 2022 as asylum-seekers from Colombia.

Their release marks a victory for the friends, family and other supporters who held rallies and spoke with numerous news outlets hoping the attention would help bring the mother and son home to Chicago.

Ricardo missed Mather’s senior prom last week, but there is a chance he could make it back in time to walk across the stage for his graduation ceremony Thursday.

The standout soccer player had committed to play for powerhouse Truman College after graduation, but those plans have been up in the air since he and his mother were detained.

Ricardo had described tough conditions in the detention facilities to friends and family, including being kept in cramped rooms with dozens of men, spending time in solitary confinement and sleeping on the floor without a blanket.