Mariachi Students from McAllen Detained by ICE After Following Legal Asylum Process

Three talented student musicians from the Rio Grande Valley — members of McAllen High School’s acclaimed Mariachi Oro — are now sitting in immigration detention centers after their family complied with the legal asylum process and attended a scheduled check-in with federal authorities.

The situation has drawn attention from journalists, community members, and Tejano music icon Bobby Pulido, who is also the Democratic nominee for Texas’ 15th Congressional District.

According to journalist Cecilia Ballí, who has spent years documenting the rise of school mariachi programs in South Texas, the three brothers — Antonio, Caleb, and Joshua Gámez-Cuéllar — were detained along with their parents on Feb. 25 during an appointment with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The family originally came to the Rio Grande Valley from Mexico in May 2023 using the CBP One program, a Biden-era system that allowed asylum seekers to schedule appointments with Homeland Security and legally present themselves at a U.S. port of entry to request asylum. After arriving, they passed a credible fear screening and had been attending every required court appearance and ICE check-in while their case moved through the immigration system.

Their final immigration hearing had been scheduled for September 2026.

But during their most recent ICE appointment, agents detained the family and transferred them to separate detention facilities.

The parents and two younger brothers — Caleb, 14, and Joshua, 12 — were taken to the South Texas Family Residential Center, which houses families. Their older brother Antonio, who had turned 18 just weeks earlier, was sent alone to the El Valle Detention Facility because the Dilley center does not house adult men.

On paper, Antonio is legally an adult. But friends and teachers say he is still very much a teenager — a high school senior just months away from graduation.

The brothers are part of the celebrated mariachi programs led by director Alex Treviño at McAllen High School and Travis Middle School. Their ensemble, Mariachi Oro, has become one of the most decorated school mariachi groups in Texas, winning eight state championships in its division.

The students have represented the region on prestigious stages, including a performance at Carnegie Hall in June 2024 and appearances on Capitol Hill, where the group was recognized before Congress and later toured the White House.

Antonio, a trumpet player, recently earned first chair in the prestigious Texas All-State Mariachi for the second time and had plans to attend college to become a music educator.

His younger brother Caleb plays multiple instruments — guitar, vihuela, guitarrón and harp — and ranked first in his area on guitarrón. Joshua, the youngest, recently earned first chair in tenor vocals for the middle school all-region mariachi ensemble and had been preparing for an upcoming concert later this month.

Just days before the brothers were detained, Mariachi Oro earned straight Division 1 ratings at the UIL State Mariachi Festival and every member received an outstanding performer medal.

The group was scheduled to compete at Festiba, a major Rio Grande Valley competition featuring some of Texas’ top mariachi ensembles. But devastated by the sudden loss of two key members, the group withdrew.

Pulido addressed the situation in a video posted on social media, calling the detentions unjust.

These Mariachi students from McAllen were good enough for Monica De La Cruz’s photo ops.

Now they’re in detention centers and she’s nowhere to be found.

South Texas notices. pic.twitter.com/LfgIkH329S

— Bobby Pulido for Texas (@PulidoForTexas) March 7, 2026

“These are good kids, talented kids, mariachi students who have represented South Texas with pride on some of the biggest stages in this country,” Pulido said. “Right now, Antonio is sitting alone in a detention center in Raymondville while his parents and little brothers are locked up in Dilley.”

Pulido emphasized that the family had followed the legal immigration process.

“They passed their credible fear interview. They showed up to every single court date, every check-in. They followed the rules. They’re doing it the right way, and now they’re being torn apart,” he said.

Pulido called on leaders in the Texas congressional delegation to intervene, saying the students represent the very values mariachi programs teach.

“Mariachi teaches discipline, pride, hard work, and family — everything we say we want young people to represent,” he said. “These students need help, because South Texas is watching.”

Ballí said the story highlights the cultural importance of school mariachi programs across the United States.

“These programs teach discipline, artistry, and pride in cultural heritage,” she wrote. “But they also teach something deeper: that these young musicians belong on American stages.”

A GoFundMe has been organized by Ezra Cavazos, Antonio’s girlfriend, and Denise Robles, the boys’ cousin, to help cover legal fees and other expenses while the family is in detention.

For now, the Gámez-Cuéllar family awaits separate immigration hearings that will determine their future in the United States — while a community that once celebrated their music now rallies behind them from afar.

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