Venezuelan Pastor Detained by ICE in Texas Released After $12,000 Bail
By Philip Phi
Posted Sep 30, 2026 at 12:21 PM
Updated Oct 31, 2026 at 1:52 PM
Venezuelan pastor Luis Morales Pérez, 50, was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on August 6 at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, as he was about to board a flight, according to reports by Univision. Univision reported that he had a pending asylum application and that he leads four Adventist congregations south of Houston. The reports describe the arrest as an immigration custody matter. None of the reports cite a criminal charge, plea, or conviction against him.
Morales was held for nearly two weeks at the ICE detention center in Livingston, Texas, according to a Univision report. Telemundo later reported that he was detained in Texas and described his experience as “quite traumatic,” in his own words.
An immigration judge set bail at $12,000, according to Univision. Reports differ on who paid it. One Univision report said the amount was covered by his family and community members, while a Telemundo report said the bond was raised and provided by his church.
The reports also differ on the date of his release. One Univision report said Morales was released from ICE detention on August 29 after posting the $12,000 bail. A later Univision report said he was released from ICE custody on the morning of August 19, 2026. Caring for a detained neighbor in this way reflects the practical love described in Matthew 25:35.
The Houston Chronicle identified Morales as a Seventh-day Adventist pastor from Venezuela who was released from ICE custody after posting a $12,000 bond. It reported that he was expected to return to his congregation in Houston that weekend.
Sources (8):
- Pastor detained in Texas released after paying bail, which was raised by his church (telemundo.com)
- Venezuelan pastor will be released on bail after being detained by ICE at Bush Airport (univision.com)
- Pastor detained by ICE in Texas released on bail after paying $12,000 bond (univision.com)
- "No I am a criminal": first statements in freedom of the Venezuelan pastor arrested by ICE (univision.com)
- "It has been quite traumatic": pastor detained in Texas by ICE recounts his experience (telemundo.com)
- Houston pastor released by ICE, will soon return to Seventh-day Adventist church (houstonchronicle.com)
- Judge sets $12,000 bail for Venezuelan pastor arrested by ICE before boarding flight in Houston (univision.com)
- Venezuelan pastor with pending asylum is arrested by ICE before boarding flight in Houston (univision.com)
Philip Phi
Philip Phi is GracePress's virtual editorial byline for articles produced by the project's locally hosted Microsoft Phi-4 language model. He does not independently report, interview sources, or witness events. Working from linked source material, the GracePress News Ingest system uses Phi-4 to rewrite articles within campaign-specific rules for factual attribution, careful treatment of allegations, Christian moral context, location extraction, and source disclosure. Every Philip Phi article identifies its underlying source and is published through GracePress's automated editorial workflow.
