One of two Venezuelan doctors arrested by immigration agents in South Texas over the past two weeks was released on Thursday, after spending 10 days in detention. The second doctor remains in custody.
Dr. Ezequiel Veliz, 32, was detained by Border Patrol agents at a checkpoint on April 6. His release came after an outcry from medical associations and physicians in the Rio Grande Valley, an area facing a severe doctor shortage.
“Finally, this nightmare comes to an end,” said his husband, Joseph Williams, after he paid an $8,000 bond Thursday morning.
Dr. Veliz treated people with diabetes, hypertension and other ailments at UT Health Rio Grande Valley, where he was named resident of the year in 2025.
He was featured in a New York Times article earlier this month detailing a Trump administration policy that has frozen the issuance of visa extensions, work permits and green cards for citizens of 39 countries, including Venezuela, forcing hospitals to let go of some physicians, including Dr. Veliz.
The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment about his release.
Dr. Veliz and his husband, an American citizen, were driving to Houston when they were stopped by Border Patrol agents at a checkpoint.
After the arrest, the Department of Homeland Security said the physician had showed agents an application for a J-1 visa, which foreign medical physicians obtain to work in U.S. hospitals. “Having a J-1 application does not qualify as an immigration status that would allow him to be in or remain in the United States of America,” the agency said in a statement.
Within a week of Dr. Veliz’s detention, another Venezuelan doctor in the same area, Dr. Rubeliz Bolivar, who worked in an emergency room, was detained with her five-year-old daughter after checking in for a flight to California, where she had planned to join her husband for their asylum interview. Dr. Bolivar, who has a valid work permit, remained in custody on Thursday. Her child, who was born in the United States, has been released.
John Yoon is a Times reporter based in Seoul who covers breaking and trending news.
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