Disabled US citizen's family says ICE stopped his father from attending his funeral

Wael Tarabishi died three months after his caregiver father, Maher Tarabishi, was detained during a routine check-in with ICE in October.

A family in Arlington, Texas, grieved as they laid 30-year-old Wael Tarabishi to rest. His father, Maher Tarabishi, however, was not at the funeral. Instead, he was at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center nearly three hours away in Anson, Texas.

Wael faced a long battle with Advanced Pompe Disease, causing him to be severely disabled. Maher was by his side through it all, and has been described as his son's arms, legs and lungs because of how involved and essential he was in his life.

Maher, a Jordanian native, overstayed a tourist visa here in the U.S. in 1994, his family and advocates said via @freemahertrabishi on Instagram account. The U.S. government allowed Maher to remain in the country legally to care for Wael through a Supervision Order in 2008, according to the account.

Maher presented himself at the Dallas field office to fulfill conditions of the Supervision Order last year for his annual check-in appointment, but found the building under temporary closure, the account noted. In an act of good will, the account said, Maher visited the office again once it re-opened.

Despite maintaining lawful status and carrying valid documentation of Wael's condition, officers placed Maher in handcuffs and was told to "shut up and sit down" as he pleaded with them, according to the account.