The manager of a Queens pizzeria whose deliveryman is facing deportation after being detained while making a run to a Brooklyn Army base claimed the guard who initially stopped his employee from entering “had it out for him.”
“He really had a hard on for him – that’s what this is all about,” the manager of Nonna Delia’s in College Point told The Post Thursday.
The deliveryman, Pablo Villavicencio – an undocumented immigrant from Ecuador who lives on Long Island with his American wife and two kids – found himself detained by military police last week when he went to deliver an order of pasta at the Fort Hamilton base.
Villavicencio, who has delivered to the Army base before, flashed his city-issued IDNYC card for entry on Friday like he’s done in the past.
When he got inside, Villavicencio says another guard demanded more identification from him before calling US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
After Villavicencio signed a waiver OK-ing a background check, an active ICE warrant was discovered, a Fort Hamilton spokeswoman said, adding that Villavicencio has been an “ICE fugitive” since 2010 when he failed to comply with a voluntary departure order.
Villavicencio was ultimately arrested by federal agents and was being held at an ICE detention center. He is slated for deportation within days.
“He’s a great guy. Never disrespectful to anyone here. Hard working, just a solid, good guy. It’s terrible, especially for his family,” said Nonna Delia’s manager, who did not want to give his name.
The manager added: “My heart goes out to his family. I was talking to his wife yesterday. They are not doing well. They’re taking this really hard. Really bad. I don’t know what they’re going to do.”
At a press conference Wednesday, city officials blasted the arrest of Villavicencio and demanded his release.
“Is our city or our nation any safer now that Pablo the pizza deliveryman is off the streets? It’s insane – the message it sends is scary and ridiculous,” Councilman Justin Brannan (D-Bay Ridge) said.