An undocumented immigrant whose family claims she drove into the entrance of a San Diego military base by mistake could now face deportation.
Last month, Ana Camero, 64, took a different route home from her job in La Jolla as a restaurant dishwasher. After stopping at a gas station on Washington Street, she mistakenly drove into the Marine Corps Recruit Depot near the San Diego airport.
Following routine procedure, military personnel at the entrance asked for identification so she could turn around. But Camero did not have proper documentation. This prompted a call to the U.S. Border Patrol, and Camero was detained, her family said.
“Anyone can make a mistake,” said her daughter, Melissa Hernández. “She wasn’t a threat, it was just a wrong turn.”
On April 7, Hernández was sitting at home when she realized it was late and her mother had not returned. Then she received a call from a military officer asking her to pick up her mother’s vehicle at MCRD, she said.
She first thought the authorities had taken the vehicle because her mother did not have a driver’s license, but she said she never expected her mother to be detained. “It never even crossed my mind,” she said.
As she waited outside the training base for answers, she noted several Border Patrol vehicles arriving.
A spokesperson for the Marine Corps Recruit Depot said that if a person without proper authorization attempts to enter a federal facility, they are required to show government-issued identification.
“If the individual cannot or does not provide the required identification, the appropriate federal authorities — including U.S. Customs and Border Protection — are notified,” a spokesperson said in a statement. “This protocol applies regardless of whether the individual claims the entry was accidental. As a federal installation, we are mandated to uphold all applicable federal statutes and laws.”
According to CBP, Border Patrol agents may respond to military installations to provide assistance when requested.
The federal agency said it could not comment on individual cases, citing privacy concerns. It added that “during the course of their assistance and duties, Border Patrol agents may take custody of any individual found present in the United States in violation of applicable federal law and process them accordingly.”
Camero, originally from Mexico, has lived in the U.S. for more than 20 years, and her family says she has no criminal record. She is currently in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody pending removal proceedings.
During a recent hearing at the Otay Mesa Detention Center, an immigration judge gave Camero time to get an attorney because she said she wanted to fight her case. Near the end of the hearing, Camero could not hold back tears as she requested medical assistance while in detention. The judge reiterated that medical assistance is available if needed.
Pastor José Manuel Valdez of San Pablo Iglesia Cristiana Church was at the hearing to show solidarity with Camero and her family. He said he has known Camero for three years.
“It’s an injustice,” he later said. “Because it wasn’t something she planned, she just drove in and didn’t know what to do.”
Adriana Jasso, a human rights advocate, said this is not the first time she has heard of an undocumented immigrant driving into a military base by mistake. She cited a 2019 case in which a woman was detained by immigration authorities for two weeks for the same misstep, but at a different military facility in San Diego.
Jasso, who works with the San Diego American Friends Service Committee, acknowledged that such mistakes can be costly. “It is a human error,” she said. “But the consequence is another level of liability because it becomes an immigration situation.”
Hernández said she is worried about her mother, who has diabetes. Her next hearing is scheduled for late May.
“My mother is sad,” she said. “She doesn’t want to leave, she wants to stay here with her family.”
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