Mervin Jose Yamarte Fernandez

Coming to the US

Originally Mervin Jose Yamarte Fernandez was hesitant to move to the US, but his sister convinced him to join her in Dallas County, TX to provide a better life for his partner and daughter who remained in their home state of Zuliain Venezuela.  He decided to travled to the US to support his family and send back his earnings to fix up his house which needed the roof replaced and kitchen refurbished. News reporting indicates Mervyn had tattoos with his daughter’s name, and another that said strong like Mom, and a third shows two clasped hands, representing him and his partner next to the year they started dating. His family insists his tattoos are not due to any involvement with Tren de Aragua. He came through the Darien Gap with 13 other Venezuelans, including three other men from his neighborhood in Venezuela ( Edwar Herrera, Andy Javier Perozo, and Ringi Rincon).  He arrived at the border in September 2023, crossing the Rio Grande and surrendering to US Border Patrol agents, who detained and then released them.  He was working in a tortilla factory in Texas.

Detention and disappearance to CECOT

Armed ICE officers showed up at a townhouse Mervyn shared with the three friends he traveled to the US with on March 13 and detained the men.  Mervin’s younger brother, Jonferson, witnessed the arrest but was not detained. It is unclear why ICE did not detain Jonferson.  Mervin spoke to his mother by phone and told her they were taken to a Texas Detention Center.  The men’s names do not appear on any criminal court records. Yamarte told his mother they were asked to sign deportation papers which they agreed to do thinking they would be deported back to their families in Venezuela.  Instead his mother spotted him in a video released of the men disappeared to El Salvador.

Yamarte’s family is planning to self deport to Venezuela. His sister said she does not blame Trump because she was taught not to judge others. She also said the president’s decisions are 

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/mar/19/venezuelan-deportations-families-trump

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz032xjyyzyo

https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2025/03/18/trump-migrants-venezuelans-deportation-bukele/