German Machado was getting ready for work on Tuesday morning when immigration agents took him into custody outside his home in Batavia, New York, according to his union, United University Professions (UUP). Machado is an IT technician at SUNY Brockport. He is now being held at the Buffalo Federal Detention Facility.

His family says he has followed the rules. According to his wife, Maria Velázquez, Machado holds a federal work permit that stays valid until 2029. The couple left Venezuela in 2016 after Velázquez, a journalist, says she was threatened and harassed by Nicolás Maduro’s government. They applied for asylum after reaching the United States and are still waiting on a decision.

No public reason has been given for the arrest. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has not explained why a man with permission to work, a home in Batavia, and an open asylum case was taken into custody outside his front door before his workday began.

“We are not criminals, we are good citizens trying to live a life in peace,” Velázquez said in a statement released by UUP.

People who escaped an authoritarian government and went through the legal process deserve fair treatment, not a surprise arrest. No matter where someone stands politically, due process should mean something. Families seeking safety should be able to trust that following the rules protects them.

The ICE Buffalo Field Office can release Machado while his asylum case moves forward, and it can tell the public why he was detained. Coworkers and union members at SUNY Brockport are planning a rally for him this week.

Sign the petition to call on the ICE Buffalo Field Office to release German Machado now and give his family answers.