Father deported to Mexico after 30 years in U.S. tells his story

DETROIT, Michigan (KTRK) -- A Michigan father who was deported to Mexico after living in the U.S. for 30 years is speaking out about what it was like to tell his family goodbye.

Jorge Garcia was deported on January 15 and can't return to the U.S. for a decade.

Garcia says he came to the U.S. with his family when he was 10 years old and has been working to find a path to citizenship.

"I kind of had it in the back of my mind that something like this was going to happen, but I didn't think it was going to happen this soon, because the other times they were giving me more time," Garcia said.

Garcia leaves behind two children. He says before he left, his son wouldn't talk and all his daughter could do was cry.

"It's a nightmare. They're sad. They're depressed. They don't really comprehend everything that's going on. All they know is their dad is gone, and they don't know when they're going to see him again," Jorge's wife Cindy said.

Cindy is working to get him back to the United States, but she says it could be 18 months before he even gets a hearing.