A woman who lived legally in the U.S. for 50 years was detained by ICE upon returning from vacation

Lewelyn Dixon, a 64-year-old legal permanent resident who has lived in the United States for five decades, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) at Seattle airport after returning from a trip to her native Philippines in late February.

The arrest, which took her family and community by surprise, reportedly occurred due to an old conviction for embezzlement from the year 2000, according to her lawyer, Benjamin Osorio, in an interview with NBC News.

Dixon remains in custody at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, Washington, and has a hearing scheduled for July.

The "darkest secret" of an exemplary life

Dixon, who has been working as a laboratory technician at the University of Washington (UW Medicine) since 2015, was arrested after, according to Osorio, the Customs and Border Protection Office discovered a non-violent conviction in her history for embezzlement of $6,460, which occurred in 2000, when she was a supervisor at Washington Mutual Bank.

Dixon was sentenced to 30 days in a social rehabilitation center and to pay compensation, which she completed in 2019. Her family was unaware of the incident, which her niece Lani Madriaga described as her aunt's "darkest secret."

"If I hadn't traveled, this wouldn't have been triggered," Osorio stated.

Lani Madriaga, Dixon's niece, revealed that her aunt had been eligible for U.S. citizenship for years, but chose to retain her Filipino nationality due to a family promise and to maintain her properties in her hometown.

"She probably didn't understand the risk. Otherwise, she would have probably become naturalized before traveling," she specified.

Since arriving in the United States at the age of 14, Dixon has become a fundamental pillar for her family. She is also a respected employee at her workplace.

On the day of his arrest, he was scheduled for a shift at the hospital where he works. The family now fears that he could lose both his job and his pension, just as he was about to reach 10 years in the position, the time required to secure his benefits.

Susan Gregg, spokesperson for UW Medicine, did not provide details about Dixon's employment status, but stated: "UW Medicine is committed to the well-being of all its employees and expects that Lewelyn will receive due process in a timely manner."

Meanwhile, the woman remains in detention and, according to her relatives, has been helping other detainees by serving as a translator and facilitating communication with their lawyers.

His family started a campaign to secure his release and warns other immigrants about the risks of not completing their naturalization process.

"To those who avoided obtaining citizenship like my aunt, who thought they were protected: No. Get your citizenship," she advised.

The story of Lewelyn Dixon highlights how an old conviction can have unexpected consequences even decades later, especially in an increasingly complex and strict migration context.

Frequently Asked Questions about the Detention of Lewelyn Dixon by ICE