John Gannon, a 75-year-old Trump voter from Texas, says he regrets his decision after ICE arrested his fiancée, Yasmin Suarez Reyes, at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport on July 24. Suarez Reyes entered the U.S. under the Visa Waiver Program in October 2023 and filed for asylum within the 90-day window, but ICE says her authorized stay expired and has processed her for deportation. Her attorney says she has no criminal record, obtained a work permit and driver's license while her case was pending, and has been held in Conroe, Texas. The detention coincides with a reported uptick in airport arrests linked to expanded ICE–TSA data sharing.
Trump Voter Says He Regrets His Choice After ICE Detains Fiancée at Houston Airport
John Gannon, a 75-year-old Republican from Texas, says he regrets voting for Donald Trump after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested his fiancée, Yasmin Suarez Reyes, at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston.
Gannon, a businessman who owns billboards in the U.S. and operates establishments in Mexico, told CBS News that he and Suarez Reyes, 45, had planned to marry. He says those plans are now on hold and accused recent immigration enforcement of "destroying families." "I voted for Trump," he said. "I wouldn't do that again, not after this fiasco."
Gannon's fiancée, a Spanish citizen, was arrested while having a pending immigration case. / CBS News
What happened at the airport: According to Gannon, Suarez Reyes was detained on July 24 after she passed through security while the couple were traveling to Las Vegas for a furniture industry convention. He said plainclothes ICE officers confronted her, and that several agents then escorted her to a vehicle. Gannon described the arrest as sudden and said he was "in total disbelief."
Legal status and immigration details: Suarez Reyes' attorney, Anne Kennedy, told CBS News that Suarez Reyes entered the United States legally in October 2023 under the Visa Waiver Program as a Spanish citizen. That program generally permits stays up to 90 days. Government records reviewed by CBS indicate Suarez Reyes filed for asylum before the 90-day period ended, and the asylum claim remains pending.
Suarez Reyes, who entered the U.S. legally under a visa waiver program, applied for asylum within 90 days, and has since obtained a work permit and driver's license. / CBS News
Despite filing for asylum within the allowable window, ICE told Kennedy that Suarez Reyes' authorized stay had expired and that she was therefore processed for removal. Kennedy said Suarez Reyes has no criminal record, secured a work permit and a driver's license while her case was pending, and could pursue permanent residency through marriage to Gannon.
Detention and broader context: ICE's detainee tracking system shows Suarez Reyes has been held at a processing center in Conroe, Texas. Kennedy told CBS that Suarez Reyes has been in a physical cell for nearly two weeks despite having followed U.S. immigration procedures.
The arrest comes amid a reported rise in airport detentions tied to expanded data-sharing between ICE and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). The New York Times and other outlets have reported that hundreds of thousands of visitors overstay visas annually, and that new information-sharing measures have led to increased detection of overstays at airports. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told the Times, "This administration is working diligently to ensure that aliens in our country illegally can no longer fly unless it is out of our country to self-deport."
Responses: The Daily Beast reported it had reached out to the White House and DHS for comment. Suarez Reyes' attorney continues to advocate for her release while her immigration case proceeds.
Bottom line: The case highlights tensions between immigration enforcement, legal technicalities around the Visa Waiver Program and asylum filings, and the personal consequences for families caught in the policy changes.
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