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The owner of a vineyard services business, who was arrested by ICE June 12, will be deported to Mexico, despite having lived and worked in the U.S. for decades and having widespread support from the Willamette Valley wine industry.
The owner of a Newberg business providing vineyard-management services is being deported.
Moises Sotelo had been detained June 12 by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on his way to work at his business, Novo Start Vineyard Service.
The news of his deportation was reported Wednesday, July 16, on a GoFundMe appeal organized by his daughter, Alondra Garcia. Sara Specter, owner of Bells Up Winery in Newberg, updated the GoFundMe with the news Sotelo is being deported to Mexico this week.
“The Sotelo family is still working on ways to attempt to bring him home, but at the moment, his case is closed,” Specter wrote. “We hope to continue to post updates to this GoFundMe when possible.”
Sotelo family spokesperson Stephanie Hoffman told Lookout Eugene-Springfield that Sotelo’s daughter Alondra and Novo Start vineyard manager Victoria Reader are continuing the business with Sotelo’s support.
The news of Sotelo’s detainment sparked a swift outcry from members of the Oregon wine industry, who said he was a hardworking entrepreneur and churchgoing father of three who had earned deep respect throughout the community for his dedication to his craft. Sotelo was honored with the Oregon Wine Board’s annual Vineyard Excellence Award in 2020.
Bubba King, a Yamhill County commissioner, said many people in the community worked hard to try to bring him home and bring his situation to light.
“The general feeling around here is defeated,” he told Lookout Eugene-Springfield after hearing Sotelo would be deported.
Since the news broke of Sotelo’s detainment, King said he has heard of other deportations in the area, but none had received the attention that Sotelo did, due to his prominent connections in the area’s wine industry. An employee of Sotelo’s business was detained June 6. That person’s name and current location are unknown. Sotelo’s last name has been reported as Sotelo Casas and Sotelo; Lookout is using the name given in the GoFundMe account.
When Lookout Eugene-Springfield inquired to ICE about Sotelo’s detainment, the spokesperson said Sotelo was targeted because of a prior conviction for driving under the influence of intoxicants.
King said, and Oregon Public Broadcasting reported, that there is no evidence Sotelo was ever charged.
The impact on the Latino community has “really been hard,” King said. “It’s been having an impact on our economy. I know of a lot of crews that aren’t showing up to work, and are scared.”
King said a recent Latin music concert in McMinnville was sparsely attended.
“It’s usually a huge turnout from the Latin community, and it was empty, nobody there,” King said. “There’s still a high level of fear for getting [separated] from your family.”
Sotelo’s GoFundMe had raised $153,654 so far to help the family with expenses following his detainment.
In the GoFundMe update, Specter wrote that the funds will “continue to support the Sotelo family as they exhaust every avenue to bring Moises home and sustain the family during this difficult transition.”
She went on to say, “Knowing that the community was behind the Sotelo family during this time means more than we could put into words. Moises continues to be deeply touched by the immense support and awareness that his situation has garnered from his neighbors, industry connections, and people across the country.”
In a statement provided to Lookout Eugene-Springfield in June, Morgen McLaughlin, Willamette Valley Wineries Association executive director, said, “Lane County’s vineyards, like so many across the Willamette Valley, thrive because of the deep knowledge, steady hands, and lived experience of vineyard stewards and winery team members, many of whom are immigrants or part of immigrant families.
“The human cost is devastating — these are our friends, our colleagues, the people who have helped build Oregon wine over decades. Their well-being is inseparable from our region’s success, and we stand with them.”
