MONROE, La. (KNOE) - Missouri Rep. Wesley Bell visited the Richwood Correctional Center on Tuesday, June 2.The Democrat told our sister station KMOV that one of his constituents, Boanerges Flores-Bravo of Nicaragua, was transferred from the St. Genevieve Detention Center, about an hour outside St. Louis, Missouri, to Monroe. Rep. Bell said he was able to enter the facility for about an hour, which houses ICE detainees, and speak with Flores-Bravo. According to his office, Flores-Bravo was detained during a scheduled immigration hearing.The congressman was able to visit with Flores-Bravo and secure a privacy form for him, a press release from Rep. Bell’s office said.“When I heard that one of my constituents had been separated from his family, brought to a detention center in Louisiana, and ICE officials weren’t even allowing him to sign a privacy form so we could help him with his case, I immediately headed there myself. I was able to secure this form today, and we’ll do everything we can to reunite him with his family,” Rep. Bell said.“It (Richwood Correctional Center) was not designed for this type of use. It was designed to hold and secure violent offenders. Because if it was designed for folks like Mr. Flores, as it could be like a hotel, you don’t need to lock them down and put them in prison garments. But that’s what this facility was designed to do.”Wesley Bell looking forward to changes he's planning for STL Co. prosecutor(KMOV)Flores-Bravo entered the U.S. seeking asylum with his wife and 8-year-old daughter in 2022.KNOE reached out to ICE. A spokesperson issued this statement: “On Tuesday, June 2, 2026, U.S. Representative Wesley Bell visited the Richwood Correctional Center. The visit was prescheduled through ICE, for the purposes of visiting one detainee. Rep. Bell was onsite for approximately one hour, with access to the detainee and the ICE deputy field office director.”In a statement Bell’s office said it did coordinated with Rep. Cleo Fields’ office before the visit.Rep. Julia Letlow’s district covers Richwood. In a statement her office said, “Congresswoman Letlow supports President Trump’s efforts to stop illegal immigration, and has voted to ensure ICE has the resources needed to enforce our immigration laws.”Copyright 2026 KNOE. All rights reserved.