An Armenian family moved to South Carolina to live out the American dream. Then ICE arrested the father.

CHARLESTON — Garik Mkrtchyan moved his family to the Lowcountry from Armenia in 2022 in search of the American dream. He started his own business, and his wife, Anahit Sirunyan, found a good office job with a commercial shipping company. They took out a mortgage to buy a house in the Clements Ferry area.

But days before their oldest son left to start college, authorities arrested Garik.

On Aug. 6, the electrician left home to go to work. He didn’t make it far before he was stopped by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, Anahit said.

“They didn’t even look into his documentation, just his driver’s license to confirm that it’s him — because they specifically came after him,” Anahit said. “They didn’t look into his work authorization or other documentation, and they just took him to Folkston,” referencing the ICE detention center in south Georgia.

The only allegation against Garik, she said, was that he had overstayed his visa. She noted that he had no criminal record. An ICE spokesman did not respond to multiple requests for comment, and the ICE booking website does not disclose charges against detainees.

 The family arrived in the United States with six-month tourist visas and filed paperwork seeking political asylum. That claim is pending, Anahit said. In the meantime, they received Social Security numbers and work authorization. Last year, they bought a house in Berkeley County.

They consider themselves documented immigrants, she said, as they received federal permission to live and work in the U.S. as their asylum case is reviewed. They never received any notice from the government to contradict that, Anahit said.

Now, Garik and his family are seeking another tenet of the American dream — the right to stand before a federal judge, hear the charges against him, and a chance to make the case for his freedom. Garik’s lawyers filed a habeas corpus petition to have the immigration case brought before a federal court to determine whether his detention is lawful.

The petition, filed Oct. 1, states that Garik was given a notice to appear for removal proceedings for purportedly overstaying his initial nonimmigrant visa. The reason given for his detention was that he applied for a hunting and rifle license, which Garik’s lawyers say the government is using to falsely demonstrate that he is a danger to the community.

 The petition includes several exhibits demonstrating Garik’s ties to the Charleston area, his lawful presence in the country and the danger he would face if he returns to Armenia.

The small country in the Caucasus Mountains is nestled between Turkey to the west, Iran to the south and Russia further north. Leaders from Armenia and neighboring Azerbaijan signed a declaration backed by the Trump administration in August that puts both countries on the path to peace after the decades-long Karabakh conflict.

A six-week war broke out in 2020 in the predominantly-Armenian enclave, with Azerbaijani forces taking control of portions of the autonomous enclave and taking territory from Armenia, resulting in mass protests against the Armenian government.

On his asylum application, Garik said he feared further persecution by police and physical harm by government supporters if he were to return to Armenia.

Hard work and respect for the law

Both Anahit and Garik hold advanced degrees. English is their third language, after Armenian and Russian.

Anahit said their work ethic and emphasis on education was instilled in them by their parents. Their children also follow in their footsteps. Their oldest son got a 1440 on the SAT and received multiple offers for college scholarships. He is now studying chemical engineering. Their daughter has won multiple dance competitions. Both she and her little brother also have received honors and awards at school.

Anahit said that she supports the immigration policy against criminals who are in the country unlawfully.

“It should be safer for my kids, for my family, if there are no drugs and no guns in schools,” she said. “We decided to stay here because we felt the law is everything, because of the rule of law.”

Her brother, Arshak Sirunyan, said his brother-in-law has appeared in immigration court twice since his arrest. A judge denied bond, which has been appealed. It may take months to get a response, Arshak said. In the first hearing, he said the prosecutor didn’t mention Garik’s pending asylum case, which is proof of Garik’s lawful presence in the U.S., Anahit said. But the judge said seeing it would not change his decision.

During Garik’s second appearance, attorney Vano Haroutunian uploaded the asylum case documents. A different judge asked the prosecutor why Garik’s work authorization and asylum application were not presented to him for viewing — a question Arshak said the prosecutor did not answer.

Arshak, who is a naturalized U.S. citizen, noted that “they have all the rights to stay, remain legal and work legally” until their asylum case is resolved.

“It’s just heartbreaking,” he said. “America has been a strong pillar for justice and freedom, shelter, and a safe haven for those families who are seeking better life and better opportunities. Seeing this happen to a family who lived by the law, obeyed the rules, paid their taxes and dues, worked hard, studied well, and then being incarcerated unreasonably — it’s heartbreaking.”

Anahit said she would understand and comply if the government had given them notice to leave the country as part of a broad deportation initiative.

“Just give them the notice that you’re not going to grant them asylum” instead of detaining them in a prison, Arshak said.

‘It’s worse than a prison’

Arshak and Anahit have made the hours-long drive from Charleston to Folkston a few times since Garik’s arrest. They also regularly speak with him by phone. The name “detention center” doesn’t belie that the ICE facility is a prison, Arshak said.

“Actually, it’s worse than prison, because in prison, you’re allowed to take some things to your detainee,” Anahit said. “But in Folkston, all the conditions are awful.”

Arshak said there were 60 people in Garik’s block sharing six open bathrooms and eight open showers. They sleep on mattresses that are a couple inches thick. But the staff, fortunately, treats him well, he said.

Garik declined to speak with The Post and Courier due to concerns for his safety.

A 2022 report from the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general found the Folkston site did not meet standards for facility conditions, medical care or grievances, among other areas, after an unannounced inspection.

“Folkston facilities were unsanitary and dilapidated, with torn mattresses, water leaks and standing water, mold growth and water damage, rundown showers, mold and debris in the ventilation system, insect infestations, lack of access to hot showers, inoperable toilets, an inoperable thermometer display on a kitchen freezer, and an absence of hot meals,” the report stated.

ICE concurred with the Inspector General’s recommendations. In their response, ICE officials noted vents had been cleaned and would be maintained monthly to prevent mold growth. Worn mattresses were replaced, and various repairs were made.

An ICE spokesperson did not respond to questions about current conditions at the facility.

The Folkston center is run by the for-profit GEO Group, which runs dozens of state and federal prisons across the country, including 22 detention centers and processing facilities for ICE. GEO Group has operated the Folkston site as an ICE detention center since December 2016. The company owns both that facility and the adjacent D. Ray James Correctional Facility, which was contracted by ICE in June to be used for immigration enforcement. This made the Folkston complex — nearly 3,000 beds between the two facilities — effectively the largest immigration detention center in the country.

Detainees can receive messages and make calls. The detention center also has three-hour windows on Saturdays and Sundays for loved ones to visit.

Local immigration attorney Nina Cano said Folkston and other ICE facilities have more security protocols than a county jail, including the ability of detention center staff to detain people in the country unlawfully.

“Oftentimes you’re required to divulge what your country of origin is, what your immigration legal status is, and all of that kind of stuff,” she said. “As an attorney, I tell my clients, ‘If you don’t have a green card or U.S. citizenship, anytime you walk into the detention facility, you’re running the risk of getting picked up and detained yourself. “Because at this point, ICE has the ability to detain anyone who does not have a lawful status.”

‘And now Dad’s not here’

Garik’s detention has been difficult for his family. With her oldest son away at college, she is taking care of her younger children while still working full-time. Her brother has been helping with the efforts to get Garik released.

Their family has also been supported by the local Armenian community. Tatevik Yeghiazaryan, a family friend who has known Arshak for years, was one of several people to write a letter of support for Garik to the immigration court. She said the community is all about coming together, especially in times of need.

“It’s like a family community type of thing for us,” she said. “And we gather and we celebrate. We give each other a hand or help if they need. There’s not a lot of Armenians in Charleston, so we all know each other.”

Data from the 2023 American Community Survey estimated between 1,000 and 3,600 people with Armenian ancestry live in South Carolina, with roughly a fifth of them living in the Charleston area.

Yeghiazaryan said as the adults have become friends, so too have their children. She added Garik and his family are the “kindest people on the entire planet.”

Yeghiazaryan, who works as a mental health therapist for kids and families, said Garik’s detainment has had a notable impact on his children, especially his youngest son.

“It’s been like a very big, dramatic change for him,” she said. “With the cultural shock, and then catching up at school and making new friends, making American friends, Armenian friends, and handling all these things that happened at the same time. And now Dad’s not here. … It’s very heartbreaking.”

Yeghiazaryan said she gives a lot of credit to Anahit for continuing to work, raise their kids and show resilience. She added she remains hopeful that Garik will be able to return home to his family.

“I believe that if you serve God and you’re an honest and truthful person, then it will come back to you. And I believe this family carries so many amazing values,” she said.

No other options

Immigrants facing deportation proceedings are unlikely to have an attorney. Fewer than 1 in 4 of immigrants were represented by a lawyer in immigration court cases that resulted in removal orders in August, according to data compiled by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University. That figure includes unaccompanied children.

Haroutunian, the New York-based immigration attorney representing Garik, said his firm represents clients in immigration cases all over the country. Garik was wrongfully detained and is both lawfully in the country and without a criminal record, Haroutunian said.

“I know that he has no criminal record, no violation, no parking ticket, no speeding ticket. He has an absolutely clean record,” Haroutunian said. “He has never been accused of, arrested or charged with anything, either here or in his native country. He’s a law-abiding guy who’s here with his family. He’s a homeowner. He has a mortgage. He has a business. He’s a productive member of society.”

Nina Cano said habeas corpus filings, like the one in Garik’s case, are becoming a “useful tool” for immigration attorneys.

She said immigration courts are not like other federal courts, which were granted their powers by the U.S. Constitution and are independent from other government branches. Immigration judges are employees of the U.S. Department of Justice, an executive branch agency like ICE.

Haroutunian said petitioning the federal court is really the only other legal option they have if they cannot get Garik released through proceedings in immigration court.

“There are no other options. There’s no other court that we could go to,” he said.

He added that appealing up the federal court system is the only other way it could progress in legal terms.

Anahit and Arshak reached out the offices of U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, Sen. Lindsey Graham, and Georgia Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock as well as to the White House, asking them to intervene.

Representatives for Mace and Ossoff submitted congressional inquiries to ICE about Garik’s case. The family is in the process of filling out paperwork for Graham’s office so they can do the same.

Arshak said they remain hopeful that Garik will be released, whether it be a result of the legal process or the congressional inquiries.

“This is not a political factor anymore. This is not Democrats, Republicans, independents,” he said. “This is the law. He has all the civil rights to be out of the detention center. Instead, they are keeping him there unlawfully.”