By MES Dispatch Staff
The Briefing
- Wisconsin State Patrol trooper Carel Aaron Van Der Merwe, 21, was released Nov. 6 from ICE custody, a day after being detained at Dane County Regional Airport in Madison, his attorney said.
- Attorney Marc Christopher said Van Der Merwe was traveling to New Mexico to visit family and holds a valid work permit that runs through 2030.
- The Department of Homeland Security told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he entered the U.S. in March 2019 with permission to stay until September 2019 and overstayed.
- Christopher disputes that, saying the family has been in the country lawfully while an asylum application has been pending for seven years.
- Van Der Merwe was released under an order of supervision that requires periodic check-ins with ICE and likely electronic monitoring.
MADISON, Wis. — A Wisconsin State Patrol trooper detained by federal immigration agents at a Madison airport has been released from ICE custody, his attorney said, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Carel Aaron Van Der Merwe, 21, was released Nov. 6, a day after he was taken into custody at Dane County Regional Airport, attorney Marc Christopher said. Christopher said Van Der Merwe was traveling to New Mexico to visit family and has a valid work permit.
Christopher said agents detained Van Der Merwe just after he cleared security, handcuffed him and drove him to the Dodge County Jail, which holds ICE detainees. He said it appears the Transportation Security Administration alerted ICE when Van Der Merwe bought his ticket.
He was released under an order of supervision, which requires periodic check-ins with ICE, Christopher said. Van Der Merwe will likely be subject to electronic monitoring, possibly through a phone app instead of an ankle bracelet.
A DHS spokesperson told the newspaper that Van Der Merwe entered the U.S. in March 2019 with permission to stay until September 2019 and overstayed. The statement added that work authorization or a pending application does not confer legal status.
Christopher disputed that account. He said the family has been in the country lawfully while waiting for immigration officials to decide its asylum application, which has been pending for seven years.
According to Christopher, Van Der Merwe came to the U.S. from South Africa with his family on visas when he was 14 and grew up in New Mexico. He wanted to join the military but could not because he is not a permanent resident. He earned a criminal justice degree, then looked for states where he could work in law enforcement with his immigration status and settled on Wisconsin, the lawyer said.
Van Der Merwe lives in Onalaska and has worked out of Tomah for the State Patrol for about a year. His work authorization is valid until 2030.