Utahns are at risk for aggressive and unnecessary ICE detention and deportation. Salt Lake City resident Julio Irungaray is one of those Utahns.
Julio Irungaray has lived in Utah for over 35 years. On June 23rd, he was detained by ICE after being taken from his home in Salt Lake City. Irungaray’s detention serves as a testament that we must get rid of ICE in Utah.
As Utahns, we must stand with our communities against ICE to protect all of Utah.
Sherwood Park press conference
On June 25th, there was a sudden press conference held by Irungaray’s family at Sherwood Park. The conference was full of community members outraged at Irungaray’s abduction. “My father is not a criminal. He is a hard-working migrant through and through,” said Julio Irungaray Jr., Irungaray’s son. “Our family is under attack. We’re sad, but we’re not afraid.”
“[My father] has put forth his energy over the past 30 years to help my brother and I pursue our dreams,” said Chantal Irungaray, Irungaray’s daughter. “As I work towards pursuing my nursing degree and my brother works on his master’s, my dad has taken on two jobs… to support us.”
Irungaray was taken from outside his home at around 8 a.m. He works two jobs at Santo Taco and at a local movie theatre to support his family. When he was coming home from a late shift, ICE detained him. Chantal said, “Yesterday, when he got home from his night job at 8 a.m.… ICE was waiting outside our home to take him.”
Chantal Irungaray finished her story about her father’s detainment with this horrifying line. “I just woke up to screams from my mom that La Migra had gotten him.”
Julio Irungaray is a Utahn
Even if Irungaray had not made such significant contributions to Utah, his detainment would still be deplorable. However, Julio has been a pivotal part of Utah’s community for over 35 years. Salt Lake City has been his home for over half of his life.
Irungaray was an avid soccer and World Cup fan. He invested this passion in the Salt Lake community through countless soccer matches and by supporting anyone who was interested in the sport. Before ICE abducted him, he was planning on hosting a free soccer event for Salt Lake City youth.
For over 20 years, he has been one of the loudest voices for soccer in Salt Lake City. He would play soccer at Sherwood Park every weekend, making the sport more accessible for anyone interested.
“We’re here at the soccer court at Sherwood Park because this was a place where Julio would come every single week to play soccer with his community,” said Devin Martinez. “That’s only one aspect of… what we’ve lost in our community with his detention.”
Alec Marshall, Irungaray’s long-term soccer partner, was also present at Sherwood Park. “He grew up only having a ball, and that’s all he needed to be happy. And he shared that joy with us,” said Marshall. “We started off small with just a few of us. And then it grew into many of us coming here consistently… sharing joy together on the court.”
There is a palpable missing piece in Salt Lake City’s community following Irungaray’s detainment. Unfortunately, he’s not the only Utahn facing deportation.
ICE is harming all Utahns
The horrifying abduction of beloved Irungaray is accompanied by the terrifying statistics of abuse in ICE detention facilities.
There are hundreds of detainees across 33 states who allege medical mistreatment by ICE. Many detainees were denied their medication for life-threatening conditions, including diabetes.
ICE’s refusal to give life-saving medication is part of a spike in the fatality rates of detention facilities. There have been 51 deaths since the start of Trump’s second presidency. The rate of death in ICE detention facilities is more than four times higher than it was during Biden’s presidency.
The abysmal mistreatment of detainees is happening across the entire United States. In 2025, over 3,000 ICE-related arrests were made in Utah. One of these Utahns is Irungaray himself.
ICE has refused to give Julio Irungaray his vital medications while in detention. “ICE agents took him away before we could gather his insulin and other medications… [When] they checked his blood sugar, it was at 300,” Chantal said. “You don’t need to be in nursing school to recognize how high that is.”
During the press conference, Julio Irungaray Jr. relayed his father’s words. “I got to talk to my dad today… He called us just a couple of minutes ago… he says that ICE has his medications, but has not given him all the medications that he needs.”
All of us or none of us
While Irungaray has a history of DUI charges on his record, all of these charges have been legally expunged and the man has been sober for 17 years. These charges are not enough to justify his detainment, as there were over 11,400 Utahns arrested on DUI charges in 2023.
As Utahns, we need to stand up against this mistreatment by ICE. This is the only way we can protect ourselves, our families and other Utahns. To make sure all immigrants like Irungaray are safe, we cannot allow this mistreatment to continue.
Irungaray Jr. recalled his father’s words from the ICE detention center. “[My father] said, “Never stop fighting, because if we stop, then ICE is going to continue abusing us.””
The Irungaray family has created a GoFundMe to ensure the safe return of their father. The unjust treatment of immigrants in Utah and across the United States must come to an end.
