New York City high school student Dylan Lopez Contreras speaks out after nearly 10 months held in ICE detention

new york city — A homecoming celebration was held Thursday for a New York City high school student who spent nearly 10 months in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody.

It was Dylan Lopez Contreras, 21 years old He was detained by ICE during a routine immigration check-in appointment. He spent ten months in a facility in Pennsylvania but was released on Wednesday and returned home to New York City.

During a news conference Thursday, he was welcomed by his family, friends and local leaders — including Mayor Zahran Mamdani and Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Contreras, who is originally from Venezuela, came out wearing a New York Knicks hat in front of a crowd of people chanting his name and banners celebrating his return to his homeland. He wiped tears from his face at times during the ceremony.

He said that even though he is at home, he still feels for the people he left behind in the detention center.

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“I want to thank all of New York City, every person who stepped up, held my hand through all of this. I want to thank all the advocates, I want to thank everyone associated with someone who kept my name alive,” Contreras said through a translator. “I want to thank everyone who doesn’t forget the people who are still there.”

He was the first New York City high school student known to have been detained by ICE since President Donald Trump took office for his second term.

“We’re talking about a high school freshman in our city, and we’re talking about a young man whose years should have been defined by what defines many freshman years — getting to know himself, the classes he loves, the classes he can’t wait for the bell to ring, the friends he makes, and the city he now calls home,” Mamdani said. “Instead, he was taken out of the city. He was held captive for almost a year, and what should have been his was stolen. Because above all, Dylan is a New Yorker. He belongs in New York City. This city misses him and we are so grateful. We are so grateful that you have come home.”

The legal details of how Contreras will be released are not yet known.

It is unclear when he will return to the classroom. His legal team said he hopes to graduate and study computer engineering in college. They added that he would appeal his asylum case.

“Legally, he’s back where he started, but he’s lost almost a year of his life,” said Christine Kiplinger, a spokeswoman for the Legal Assistance Group of New York. “It’s very clear he’s not a threat to anyone. He’s not a flight risk. He’s exactly the kind of person you want as your neighbor. He couldn’t be happier to be back home with his family.”

Contreras was attending Bronx High School, which caters to older newcomers.