U of U student detained by ICE speaks out following release

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — Caroline Dias Goncalves, the 19-year-old University of Utah student who was detained by ICE following a traffic stop, has released a statement about her experience now that she is no longer in ICE custody.

You can read the full statement below.

“The past 15 days have been the hardest of my life. I was scared, and felt alone. I was placed in a system that treated me like I didn’t matter. We were given soggy wet food even the bread would come all soggy. We were kept on confusing schedules. And the moment they realized I spoke English, I saw a change—suddenly I was treated better than others who didn’t. That broke my heart. Because no one deserves to be treated like that. Not in a country that I’ve called home since I was 7 years old and it’s all I’ve ever known

“I want to say thank you—deeply—to my best friends and my family who never stopped fighting for me. Especially To my community, the organizations that stood up for me, and the senators’ offices who listened. To my attorney, Jon Hyman, thank you for giving me hope when I had none left.

“And even to the ICE officer who detained me… —he kept apologizing and told me he wanted to let me go, but his hands were tied. there was nothing he could do, even though he knew it wasn’t right.

“I want you to know—I forgive you. Because I believe that people can make better choices when they’re allowed to.

“I hope no one else has to go through what I did. But I know that right now, over 1,300 people are still in that same nightmare in Aurora detention. They are just like me—people who’ve grown up here, who love this country, who want nothing more than a chance to belong.

“I’m going to try to move forward now—to focus on work, on school, and on healing. But I won’t forget this. And I hope others won’t either. Immigrants like me—we’re not asking for anything special. Just a fair chance to adjust our status, to feel safe, and to keep building the lives we’ve worked so hard for.

“Thank you for standing with me. From the bottom of my heart.”

Goncalves was pulled over by officers with the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office in Loma, Colorado while she was traveling to Denver. She was stopped for driving too close behind a semi-truck.

According to the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office, ICE illegally used information from a multi-agency communication group in order to arrest and detain her. The Mesa County Sheriff’s Office deputy involved in the original traffic stop has since been placed on leave.

A judge granted her release on June 18.