Filipino singer Mark Mabasa’s first immigration hearing since his detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement was postponed Oct. 2 to Nov. 5, according to the Tanggol Migrante Movement, which called for his release and urged Philippine officials to press for information about his case.
Mabasa, 40, has been held at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center in Southern California since Sept. 21, when he was detained after returning to Los Angeles from a performance in Chicago. He is the son of slain Philippine broadcaster Percival “Percy Lapid” Mabasa, and his detention has drawn attention from human rights groups, Filipino migrant organizations and Sen. Risa Hontiveros in the Philippines.
The hearing came one day before the fourth anniversary of Percy Lapid’s killing. The veteran radio commentator was shot as he drove near his home in Las Piñas City on Oct. 3, 2022. The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines said he was the second journalist killed after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. took office that year.
Mark Mabasa and members of his family went to the United States in 2023 after receiving threats following the killing, according to his uncle, journalist Roy Mabasa. The family sought asylum, and Roy Mabasa has said the case remains pending and that his nephew has work authorization. The public ICE detainee locator confirms that Mabasa is being held in Adelanto but does not state why he was detained.
A family friend previously told TOFA NEWS that Mabasa had traveled to Chicago as a guest of the touring Filipino comedy trio Beks Battalion. He was detained after his flight arrived at Los Angeles International Airport. Mabasa is a singer who earlier appeared on “The X Factor Philippines” and performed at an ASEAN cultural event at the University of California, Los Angeles, in April.
Representatives of Tanggol Migrante, a coalition of Filipino migrant groups, said community members went to Adelanto for the hearing but were not allowed into the facility. They later held a protest outside Adelanto City Hall, calling for Mabasa’s release and for stronger action by the Philippine government on behalf of detained Filipino nationals.
“Mark and his family have been haunted by corruption and state neglect up until now, across oceans and across generations,” Joell Manguerra of BAYAN USA and a founding member of Tanggol Migrante said in a statement. He alleged that detained migrants face poor conditions, including inadequate food, water and medical care. Those allegations were not independently verified.
Tanggol Migrante also criticized the Trump administration’s stepped-up immigration enforcement, describing Mabasa’s detention as part of a broader campaign that has increasingly affected people with pending asylum and other immigration claims.
The administration has pushed ICE to increase arrests, although the exact daily target has been disputed. Reuters reported that current and former officials said agents faced pressure to reach 3,000 arrests a day, while the Department of Homeland Security said there were no arrest quotas. ICE made nearly 51,000 arrests in August, Reuters reported, including a growing number of people without criminal convictions, deportation orders or final removal orders.
The report also found that ICE has used TSA information to identify people at airports who previously overstayed visas, including some who later applied for asylum or other immigration benefits. A pending asylum claim or employment authorization can provide a basis to remain and work while a case is considered, but neither automatically prevents detention. The specific grounds for Mabasa’s detention have not been made public.
The Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles conducted a welfare visit with Mabasa at his family’s request, Human Rights Watch reported. Philippine Ambassador Jose Manuel Romualdez told the organization that the consulate was coordinating with the Mabasa family’s lawyers.
In a separate appeal, Hontiveros urged U.S. immigration authorities to release Mabasa and asked Philippine officials to provide assistance to the family.
Tanggol Migrante has called for a nationwide day of action on Oct. 7, seeking the release of Mabasa and other Filipinos in immigration detention. Mabasa’s next hearing is scheduled for Nov. 5.
