José Bertín Cruz-Estrada, a 35-year-old firefighter from Oregon, was arrested by US Border Patrol on 27 August while fighting the Bear Gulch wildfire in Washington state. The arrest occurred when armed officers in unmarked vehicles approached his remote crew location in a national forest, handcuffed him and another firefighter, and drove them away. The fire was only 13% contained at the time.
Cruz-Estrada, who is undocumented and was born in Mexico, has lived in Oregon since age 12. He has worked as a firefighter since 2019 and runs a successful landscaping business. His arrest sparked outrage, as natural disasters were traditionally off limits for immigration enforcement. While the other detained firefighter, Rigoberto Hernandez Hernandez, was released after four weeks, Cruz-Estrada remained in detention and was deported to Mexico at the end of October.
Speaking from an undisclosed location in Mexico, Cruz-Estrada expressed betrayal: 'We were fighting fires deep in the forest. I never thought this could happen.' He questioned why he was targeted despite years of public service, saying, 'What if it was the [border patrol] officers’ house that was on fire? Would they still arrest me or would they let me do my job?'
Cruz-Estrada's legal troubles include a 2013 conviction for conspiracy to deliver methamphetamine, stemming from a drug bust where he was accused of being a lookout. He served no prison time but the conviction contributed to his deportation. He is now separated from his 14-year-old son, mother, and two brothers, and says Oregon is his home.
