Aug. 22, 2025Updated Aug. 25, 2025, 11:01 a.m. CTPascual Andres, an undocumented immigrant from Guatemala and father of two U.S. Marines, was detained by Florida Highway Patrol after a minor traffic accident and turned over to ICE.His daughters, Yulisa and Yeniffer Andres, are fighting for his release and have applied for "parole in place" to secure his green card.The arrest highlights the impact of 287(g) agreements, which deputize local law enforcement as immigration agents, on mixed-status families.Pascual's detention has caused significant emotional distress for his family, particularly his young son who keeps asking about his father's return.(This story was updated because an earlier version contained an inaccuracy.)Sisters Yulisa and Yeniffer Andres grew up in Boynton Beach and are now both U.S. Marines stationed in California. Their brother plans to enlist in the Air Force next May after his high school graduation.Their father, Pascual Andres, 45, an undocumented immigrant from Guatemala, instilled their pride in America as the land of education, opportunities and freedom.But on Aug. 15, Pascual was arrested by Florida Highway Patrol deputies who responded to a fender-bender car crash in which a driver hit Pascual’s vehicle from behind. Instead of aiding Pascual, the deputies detained the Boynton Beach father of four and turned him over to immigration authorities, according to his attorney, Miriam Acosta.Pascual, who doesn’t have a criminal record, was first held at Alligator Alcatraz, an immigration detention facility built in the Big Cypress Preserve region of the Florida Everglades. He was subsequently transferred to the Krome Detention Center near Homestead in southern Miami-Dade County.Yulisa, 22, and Yeniffer, 20, are now trying to secure their father’s release."It hurts me a lot,” said Yulisa, who will soon enter her second year in the Marines. "Because you’re serving this country, and we're out there doing our job for people to have freedom, but, then again, you have this going on.”The Andres sisters subsequently applied for a "parole in place,” which allows for military members to request a permanent residency status document, known as a Green Card, for a direct family member.Father of Boynton Beach U.S. Marines detained by ICEPascual’s arrest is part of President Donald Trump's nationwide immigration crackdown, enforced by the 287(g) agreements Gov. Ron DeSantis required all Florida police agencies to sign. The agreements deputize state and local law enforcement as federal immigration agents.Under the 287(g) agreements, state and local officers can arrest people they suspect of being in the country illegally as part of their daily patrols.Acosta, a Lake Worth Beach immigration attorney, confirmed to The Palm Beach Post the arrest took place on Aug. 16 in Palm Beach County. But Acosta said she has not found any records for incident or arrest reports by FHP or any documentation related to the charges for which Pascual is being held. "He was just detained and taken there (Alligator Alcatraz),” Acosta said. "And I have not been able to get any information on the basis for the detention.”Pascual's detention is also part of a growing number of cases that contradict initial assertions by Trump and other administration officials that the immigration crackdown was only to target violent criminals and convicted felons who pose a clear public safety threat."Criminals, yeah, that's one thing," Yulisa said. "But for people who obey the laws, they shouldn't be talked bad about.""Especially for someone raising girls that have chosen to protect this country,” Acosta added.Pascual’s next court hearing is scheduled for Aug. 27. Acosta said she will request that he be released with a bond. Yulisa and Yeniffer will wear their military uniforms as they address the judge remotely from California during the online hearing, while their mother and their two other siblings speak from their Boynton Beach home.Pascual's story comes on the heels of an Aug. 12 crash in which a truck driver from California, who Florida officials said entered the U.S. illegally, is accused of making an illegal U-turn on Florida's Turnpike in Fort Pierce that killed three people.That driver, Harjinder Singh, is facing vehicular homicide and immigration charges, authorities said. CBS News reported that, according to Homeland Security, Singh obtained a commercial driver’s license in California, one of 19 states and the District of Columbia that issue licenses regardless of immigration status, according to the National Immigration Law Center. Florida is not one of those 19 states.How U.S. Marines learned their father was detained by ICEOn Aug. 15, Yulisa was busy working at a California base when she got a call from her mother. Her mother said Pascual had been involved in a wreck after another driver hit the rear of his vehicle. But it was minor and nothing to worry about, her mother added.Then, the second call came in. Yulisa heard her mother crying on the other side of the line.She said a call to 911 had resulted in FHP troopers pulling up to the scene. The troopers requested Pascual's driver license and, upon realizing he did not have one, they proceeded to arrest him.Yulisa broke down in tears and called her sister, who wept with her on the phone. "We didn't know what was going to happen to him,” Yulisa said. "But we had to act fast. We had to make sure we got in contact with the lawyer.”"I told (Yeniffer), 'Hey, we have to help Mom with anything in case they do send him back,' ” Yulisa added.The next morning, Pascual called Yulisa and told her he was detained at Alligator Alcatraz. Pascual told his daughter he wasn't being mistreated but didn't give much detail about conditions inside." 'Don't worry too crazy about me. I'll be OK,' ” Pascual told Yulisa before the call cut off. 'Where is dad?' Arrest turns life of Boynton Beach family upside downThe Andres family is one of hundreds of mixed-status families that have been affected by Trump's immigration crackdown. Mixed-status families are those in which one or more of the relatives have clear status in the United States and one or more others do not, even within the same primary family unit.Yulisa, Yeniffer and their two younger siblings are all U.S. citizens. Pascual was 12 years old when his father brought him to the United States, where he has now lived most of his life. The family had already started paperwork to obtain Pascual's citizenship a month before his arrest.Ever since his arrival, Pascual has worked as a day laborer to help his relatives back home and also provide for his family in Boynton Beach.Yulisa and Jennifer describe Pascual as a hard worker and supportive father. They said their father rarely missed a day of work and instilled in them the value of pursuing an education."Even after my father had an incident which caused him to get stitches in his head, he still went to work," Yeniffer said. "We never had much, but my father tried spoiling us the best he could."Pascual's arrest has flipped the family's life upside down, Yulisa said.Every morning, Pascual drove his 6-year old son to school. Now, his wife is facing the start of the school year for her two sons on her own while also attending to her full-time job and speaking with lawyers.Yulisa said her mother is stressed, always thinking about Pascual. She always keeps her cellphone close by in case her husband calls."Where is Dad?” the sisters quote Pascual's 6-year-old son as asking again and again. "Is he coming back tomorrow?""We always get emotional every time my mom tells him, 'He's not here. He'll be back home soon,’ ” Yulisa said. "It’s very rough.”Both sisters are now juggling their daily tasks in the military while also consulting with lawyers."It's a lot going on, but I knew I had to be there for my father, so I stayed strong for him" Yennifer said. "I would say I get my personality from him."'Best moment of my life': Beach Marine recalls her father's reactionHaving the two sisters enlist as Marines became an immense source of pride for the Andres family, said Yulisa.Initially, her father was scared, Yulisa said. But Pascual quickly became the sisters' biggest cheerleader."At first, it was just hard for them because as an older daughter, he didn't want to let me go," Yulisa said of her parents. Three months later, when she returned from boot camp, Pascual saw her in uniform for the first time."I had never seen him cry and that was the first time I ever did," Yulisa recalls. "He was really proud.""That was the best moment of my life,” Yulisa added.Yeniffer said one reason she enlisted in the Marines was to travel the world, something her father couldn't do since he is undocumented. Though just in her first year in the service, Yeniffer has already served on two detachments."I remember sending a picture to my father and he told me: 'You are capable of anything,' and to enjoy it, and to enjoy it for him because he doesn’t think he’ll ever make it there," Yeniffer recalled.Over the last week, Yeniffer has gone back to read that message countless times.Despite her father's detention, Yulisa remains proud to be a U.S. Marine protecting the country that gave her family a home. Yulisa said she is not the only member at her base affected by recent immigration detentions."We talk about it, and it's not really fair,” Yulisa said. "They know that we're serving this country. It's a really rough topic."Valentina Palm covers Royal Palm Beach, Wellington, Greenacres, Palm Springs and other western communities in Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post. Email her atvpalm@pbpost.com. Support local journalism:Subscribe today.