A second rideshare driver has been detained by immigration authorities at the gate of Camp Pendleton, just days after a similar incident drew attention across San Diego County.

Rafael, a Brazilian national whose last name NBC 7 is withholding for his safety, was picked up by ICE on Saturday while attempting to collect a passenger at the base’s Cristianitos Gate. He had arrived in the United States in 2019 on a lawful visa, filed for asylum shortly thereafter citing fear of political persecution, and waited nearly seven years for an interview with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. According to his immigration attorney, Nicole Wesley, that interview finally took place on February 3 of this year and went well.

But the Trump administration ordered a pause on all asylum decisions in December, leaving Rafael in indefinite limbo despite his pending case. He had valid employment authorization and was working as a rideshare driver when he was called to a pickup at Camp Pendleton and subsequently detained.

“He’s not doing anything nefarious. He’s simply working,” said Cameron Jones, a friend who went to retrieve Rafael’s car from the base after the arrest. Jones noted that friends who drive rideshare also service Camp Pendleton but have never been allowed onto the base for pickups, raising questions about how Rafael came to be admitted at all.

ICE did not respond to requests for comment on the case. Camp Pendleton said in a statement that individuals seeking entry must have “approved credentials and a valid reason to access the base” and that ICE personnel at the gate are focused on deterring unauthorized access, not broad immigration enforcement. Jones said base personnel indicated Rafael was not the only person detained that day. A coalition of advocacy groups filed a federal lawsuit this week challenging the administration’s pause on asylum decisions.