Pizza delivery man LI detained once by ICE released on bail

A Nassau judge ordered a Hempstead man arrested while he was delivering a pizza to Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn in June to stay away from his wife after his arrest as a result of an arrest. domestic altercation, announced Tuesday the authorities.

Pablo Villavicencio, 35, married with two children, briefly appeared in front of First Court Judge Joy Watson in Hempstead and rushed out of the courthouse to avoid reporters.

The interim order of protection, rendered Saturday by Darlene Harris Judge of the District Court, allows Villacicencio to visit his two daughters aged 3 and 4 years.

Villavicencio, whose immigrant status has become a well-known cause among immigration activists after he was arrested for delivering a pizza to Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn in June, was arrested on Friday. and charged with criminal mischief after the facts, announced Monday the authorities.

A spokesman for the Nassau District Prosecutor's Office said Villavicencio pleaded not guilty on Saturday to criminal mischief related to a family incident. A criminal complaint allegedly revealed that during a dispute on Thursday with his wife, Sandra Chica, he pushed her against a wall and "slapped her to the body". When she announced that she was going to call the police, he had taken his cell phone to a kitchen counter, according to the complaint.

Accompanied by several supporters, Mr. Villavicencio rushed out of the courtroom on Tuesday morning and went down the stairs to prevent journalists from waiting near the elevator banks.

Bruce Barket, Villavicencio's lawyer, said his client did not hit his wife, but that he refused to discuss what led Villavicencio's wife to go to the police.

"He is nervous. He panicked. He is again separated from his family but, fortunately, he has not been incarcerated, "Barket said in a Tuesday interview in court. "It's a difficult thing for anyone to pass."

Barket reiterated that he thought the charges against Villavicencio would be dropped, but the arrest itself could complicate Villavicencio's immigration case.

"Obviously, a criminal conviction would not help his case," Barket said. "The fact that the case is filed will not help, but it will not hurt in the first place. That's what we try to do. "

Barket would not say if Villavicencio will go to his house or where he will live.

Judge Joy Watson of the District Court issued a temporary protection order against Villavicencio, barring her from traveling within 100 meters of his wife.

Watson has also set the date of the Villavicencio trial for November 5.

Earlier this year, after being detained for more than 50 days, a federal judge ordered that Villavicencio be released from his immigration detention and suspended his deportation.

Villavicencio should be released and allowed to remain in the United States while seeking legal residence because of his marriage to Chica, a US citizen, said US District Judge Paul Crotty.

"Although he was illegally in the United States, he is also a model citizen," wrote Crotty. "He now has two children, both American citizens. He does not have a criminal history. He paid his taxes. And he worked diligently to support his family. "

"Thank God for giving me the opportunity to live, my daughters and my wife," he said when he returned home in July.

Villavicencio had been the subject of a removal order since 2010, but had started the process of seeking legalization of his status in February, and Crotty said he was entitled to stay with his family while he pursued him.

"The expulsion of the applicant by the government would be contrary to this right," wrote the judge.