WASHINGTON — Amaury Monsalve, a D.C.-area youth baseball coach held in Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention in Louisiana, thanked supporters in an audio message played Monday night at Jackson-Reed High School, according to WTOP.
“Thank you, everybody. Thank you for helping me. Thank you for caring about my family. Thank you for caring about me,” Monsalve said in the recording.
Players and parents gathered at Jackson-Reed to hear the message, his first public remarks since he was detained by ICE. Monsalve has coached baseball at the school in Northwest Washington and in the McLean Little League system in Virginia.
Ninth grader Theo Chatterji was among the players who listened. “He’s not a threat at all; he’s been in the community serving us so long, and he really is a great guy,” Chatterji said.
Patrick Quinn, another ninth grader, said it was good to hear Monsalve was OK. Quinn said Monsalve has coached the players for three years and taught them life lessons along with baseball lessons.
Monsalve, who is originally from Venezuela, said he is working on his mental health and trying to stay strong in detention.
“I need to get and create supernatural strength to continue my fight,” he said.
In a separate account of the recording reported by DC News Now, Monsalve described his daily routine. “Every morning I start my battle, exercising my body, keeping training, getting my body strength. My family is my strength,” he said.
Arrest and dropped charges
The arrest came on Oct. 18, during an Uber shift. A police report cited by WTOP says officers pulled Monsalve over for allegedly running a red light. Inside the car, police reported, were a handgun and alcohol — and a clear bag holding a white powder, reportedly cocaine.
His attorney, Ava Benach, said the items found in the car were “the result of passengers he picked up.” DC News Now reported that Monsalve had been arrested for carrying an unregistered pistol and ammunition, possession of a controlled substance and having an open container, but that the U.S. attorney dropped the charges.
Removal order and ICE’s account
After the arrest, Monsalve was detained by ICE, and an immigration judge ordered him deported, WTOP reported. DC News Now reported that an immigration judge denied his bond last week. WTOP reported that no other hearings are currently set in his case.
Monsalve arrived in the United States in 2003 and stayed. Whether that first entry was legal is not clear, WTOP reported — the green card came later, in 2006. He has lived in Northern Virginia since. His family said he held permanent status and was looking to become a citizen.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson previously told DC News Now a different timeline matters here. The spokesperson said Monsalve entered on a temporary basis in 2003 and did not leave. He got a green card in 2006. Then, on March 28, 2025, he was placed in removal proceedings — accused, the spokesperson said, of fraud or willful misrepresentation to procure a visa, other documentation or admission into the United States.
On X, ICE used his full name — Amaury Jose Monsalve Figuera — and labelled him a “CRIMINAL ILLEGAL ALIEN from Venezuela.” ICE said his green card was revoked following immigration fraud proceedings and that an immigration judge ordered his removal on Oct. 19. ICE said he remains in custody pending deportation and that work authorization or a pending application does not make a person a citizen or give a right to remain in the country.
Appeals and community support
Benach said there is no reason Monsalve should continue to be detained. She said the defense has appealed both the bond order and the removal order.
“We appealed the bond order. We appealed the removal order, and, we’ll have to let those processes go. We’re not to forget about him. We’re going to come together, we’re going to speak out,” Benach said.
“I don’t think anybody really thinks immigration reform or immigration crackdowns mean grabbing little league coaches, grabbing beloved community figures”
Parent Joshua Daniel, who joined the gathering at Jackson-Reed, put the support in broader terms. “It’s heartbreaking and it’s wrong. And it’s only when people of faith and goodwill stand together and push back that we can make a difference,” Daniel said.
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