Salvadoran Woman Detained by ICE at Utah Airport Sparks Nationwide Outrage

A surveillance video from Salt Lake City International Airport captured the moment when plainclothes agents from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the U.S. Border Patrol arrested a woman near the baggage claim area and escorted her to a vehicle parked in the departures zone.

Identified as Marta Brizeyda Renderos Leiva

Leiva, 39, a native of El Salvador, had a final deportation order issued in 2020 after failing to attend an immigration hearing. ICE confirmed that the arrest was part of a “targeted enforcement operation.”

ICE arrest at Utah airport – Salt Lake City via Storyful

Video Raises Questions

The arrest has sparked public outrage due to the way it was carried out: agents without uniforms — some wearing sweatshirts, one in a flannel shirt and baseball cap — approached Leiva, led her into an elevator, and then into a vehicle. It remains unclear whether they identified themselves as law enforcement officers.

Detention of woman at Salt Lake City airport / Salt Lake City via Storyful

Marta Leiva’s Attorney: “It Was Alarming and Painful”

Adam Crayk, Leiva’s attorney, questioned the public nature of the arrest:

“It was in front of the whole world. It was alarming. Was it the right moment to do it? Probably not.”

Crayk warned that anyone facing a similar situation should ask who is detaining them, why, and where they are being taken, and should demand to see an immigration judge.

ICE arrest at Utah airport / Salt Lake City via Storyful

Local Authorities Respond

Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall and the City Council issued statements expressing concern about the incident. There has been no official response yet from Governor Spencer Cox or Utah’s congressional delegation.

RELATED: Green Card Applicant Arrested at U.S. Immigration Offices