Family in San Diego speaks out after ICE arrests their father

SAN DIEGO (NBC, KYMA/KECY) - A San Diego family is speaking out after their father, who is undocumented, was arrested in front of his two young children as they were on their way to school.

The family says their father, Genaro Carreto, has no criminal history, and they want to know why it happened this way.

Carreto, according to his family, came to the United States from Guatemala two years ago, fleeing violence. He then brought his three children, Eugenia, Bilver and Cristel, to seek asylum.

"He don't deserve this. The family don't deserve this because he's not a criminal," said Evelin Leyva, Carreto's niece.

Carreto was taking Eugenia and Bilver to school Wednesday morning when he was stopped on Dwight Street in City Heights. He first thought it was the police, but then realized it was ICE.

Levya, who is here legally, rushed to her family's side: "I see Eugenia shaking and Genaro...he looked at me and he was screaming. I can tell his eyes like screaming, 'Help me' or 'Do something.'"

Leyva said the agents covered their faces and didn't tell the kids what was happening.

"They took him out by force and handcuffed him, hurting his hands...My little sister and I were crying," Bilver shared.

"The little one, she can't sleep. She's panicked," Leyva added.

According to an NBC affiliate in San Diego, they found no criminal history in the county for Carreto, who's now being held at the Otay Mesa Detention Center.

When asked about his case, ICE said the agency "conducts routine, daily enforcement alongside our federal, state and local law enforcement partners throughout the San Diego community to bolster public safety, national security and border security."

However, they did not answer any specific questions about Carreto or the operation.

"It's two innocents inside the car, and they don't know where [their] dad is," Levya expressed.

This happened the same day senior administration officials said detention centers are now at capacity, with nearly 33,000 people arrested by ICE since President Donald Trump's inauguration. Of those, data shows 26% have no criminal charges or convictions.

"My dad isn't delinquent. He gets up early to go to work, to bring food home and to make sure we're okay," Cristel said.

Levya says her father was deported when she was young: "Same way. They come to the house and then, they mark[ed] our heart forever."

The kids are now afraid, they say. Still, they insist they want to share their story.

"Everyone's talk about the American dream. And that's why they come here. For American dream," Levya declared.

A dream now on hold as they wait to learn his fate.

Carreto is set to appear before an immigration judge on March 24.