On Tuesday, the IAM announced Maximo Londonio was released from custody after two months of wrongful detention by Customs and Border Patrol (CBP).¹ From the Deckplates reported that the CBP nabbed Maximo from the airport. Maximo, his wife Crystal, and their 12-year-old were returning from a trip to the Philippines. There, they visited family and celebrated 20 years of marriage. Maximo intended to return to work at the Crown Cork and Seal manufacturing company in Lacey, Washington, where he is “a lead union member” of IAM Local 695.²

IAM Local 695 (@iam_district160) member Max Londonio is free after being wrongfully detained by ICE.

IAM members and allies rallied, organized and stood in solidarity.

We will continue to fight for all workers facing injustice, inside and outside the workplace. pic.twitter.com/XJ8OVkPPE1

— IAM Union (@IAM_Union) July 14, 2025

Brian Bryant called for Maximo’s immediate release on May 20.³ Two months later, Bryant says:

We are incredibly thankful that Maximo is finally home with his family where he belongs. But the fact that he was detained for two months without cause is unacceptable. This is not just a failure of the system—it’s a violation of basic human dignity. No working person should have to go through what Maximo endured in a country that claims to stand for justice and fairness.⁴

The IAM is calling for accountability and a thorough investigation into the circumstances of Londonio’s detention. “We will not stop fighting until every worker is protected from this kind of mistreatment,” said IAM Western Territory General Vice President Bobby Martinez.⁵ It has been almost two weeks since Trump’s Big Ugly Bill became law. “The megabill,” Politico reported, “offers an unprecedented infusion of cash into the country’s immigration enforcement apparatus.”⁶ “It’s about time,” Trump’s border czar Tom Homan said, “with more money, we can do more.”⁷ It’s obvious what Homan wants to do more of. More money means more Maximos disappeared from their families. The IAM has a fight on its hands, but they don’t call us “the fighting machinists” for nothing.

1. IAM, “IAM Union Member Maximo Londonio Released After Two-Month Wrongful Detention,” news release, July 14, 2025. ↩︎
2. Alexandra Yoon-Hendricks & Caitlyn Freeman, “Another Filipino green card holder returning to WA detained at Sea-Tac,” The Seattle Times, May 19, 2025. ↩︎
3. Brian Bryant, “IAM Union Calls for Immediate Release of Wrongfully Detained Member in Washington State,” news release, May 20, 2025. ↩︎
4. Quoted in IAM, “IAM Union Member Maximo Londonio Released After Two-Month Wrongful Detention,” news release, July 14, 2025. ↩︎
5. Quoted in ibid. ↩︎
6. Myah Ward, “Trump got $170 billion for immigration. Now he has to enact it,” Politico, July 5, 2025. ↩︎
7. Quoted in ibid. ↩︎