NEENAH (NBC 26) — A Neenah retiree says he was shocked to receive a deportation notice from the Department of Homeland Security—despite being a lifelong U.S. citizen.
“Do not attempt to remain in the United States. The federal government will find you.”
That’s part of the message Tom Frantz received by email from the Department of Homeland Security.
"I thought it was spam," Frantz commented.
Nevertheless, he decided to look into it online. That's when he realized the message was serious. The Neenah retiree says the email stated he would be deported after DHS had “exercised its discretion to terminate [Frantz’s] parole.”
But Frantz isn’t in the country on parole and hasn’t committed any crime. Frantz was born in Pennsylvania and has been a U.S. citizen his entire life.
Watch: Neenah man told to leave U.S. despite being a born-and-raised citizen
“I mean, you hear about people being deported routinely on the news now,” Frantz said. “What if that were me? What would I do? Well, that email prompted me into that mode right away. ‘What would I do?’”
Frantz says he has now spent the past seven days working with Senator Tammy Baldwin and the Department of Homeland Security to ensure they both know he is here legally.
“If, by chance, this was a mistake that compounded, and there were people knocking at the door saying, ‘You haven’t left the country. You were supposed to leave the country at least seven days ago,’” he said, the situation could have been very different.
Frantz says after speaking with Senator Baldwin and the Department of Homeland Security, he believes he is now in the clear.
But he is still keeping an eye out for any more messages accidentally sent to him by DHS.
“They indicated to me that they knew not everybody who was an intended recipient had email,” Frantz said. “If I, by chance, got one of those letters, I needed to get back in touch with Senator Baldwin's office immediately.”
Frantz also says DHS has apologized “profusely” for the error, but he is still frustrated that it happened in the first place.
He also says if you or anyone you know received a deportation letter by mistake, take action before it is too late.
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