A New Britain father of three received word he will be allowed to stay in the country for now.
Mariano Cardoso Sr. feared he would have to leave his family by Friday.
Surrounded by loved ones and supporters, Cardoso was overwhelmed that he’s back at home in New Britain.
“Gracias, very, very happy,” Cardoso said.
The 49-year-old had been preparing to take sanctuary inside a church in Old Lyme.
But then the Board of Immigration Appeals reportedly granted him a last-minute stay of deportation.
The father had faced an order to return to his native Mexico by Friday.
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“Happy that fairness and justice have prevailed, at least temporarily, and I feel great relief and joy,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D- Connecticut, said.
Cardoso entered the country illegally nearly 30 years ago.
Since then his attorney says Cardoso has followed the rules, started a successful business and raised his three kids.
But then recently federal immigration authorities said he would no longer be able to stay, despite his large family here.
“We’ve been through such troubles and we learn so much,” Mariano Cardoso Jr. said.
For now Mariano Cardoso Sr. still wears his ankle tracking bracelet, hoping it can be removed soon.
His family thanks those who have helped with the fight to keep him here.
“At the end of the day, we did it because of them and I know tonight the community won,” Cardoso Jr. said.
The family’s attorney tells us the wait now begins to see if the deportation case can be reopened and if there is a pathway for Cardoso to stay here legally.
