CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A mother and son hope the Charlotte immigration court can protect them from the dangerous MS-13 gang.
A hearing was postponed Wednesday until next week.
The mother and son were stopped at the border years ago, trying to get away from the deadly gang.
The details of their lives in Honduras read like a scary movie.
The mother, named Maria, said the gang leader is her husband’s brother.
Court documents said the MS-13 killed her husband and kidnapped her 10-year-old son years ago. The boy is now a teenager.
He said in court documents, “I think my uncle wanted me to become a leader in the MS like he was because he always wanted me to be near him. He would tell me to watch him and that he wanted to teach me to be like him.”
The boy said he started as an errand boy, by getting drug or extortion money. He learned about people or their family members being killed later.
According to the court documents, the boy said he didn’t want to be involved with the MS-13 gang and that “the gangs are criminals who do not do anything good.”
Maria managed to get him back and they fled to the U.S. only to get caught at the border.
“Have you ever seen a case like this before?” reporter Ken Lemon asked Atenas Burrola with the Latin American Coalition.
“Unfortunately, because of the details of the case, it’s not rare,” Burrola said.
Burrola said that Maria and her son are part of a migration from Central America, where families are worried about powerful gangs.
Channel 9's coverage on MS-13 gang:
- 9 Investigates: An inside look at how feds took down MS-13 in Charlotte
- PART 2: An inside look at how feds took down MS-13 in Charlotte
- IN PHOTOS: Guns seized during MS-13 investigation
- AG message to MS-13 gang members: 'We will find you'
- Sessions ramps up crackdown on MS-13 with drug enforcement
“They can’t go to the police. They can’t expect the government to help them and so they have to leave the country,” Burrola said.
Maria moved to North Carolina while waiting for a hearing and wants the court to delay deportation so she has time to convince a judge to let them stay.
Maria said she recently found out the MS-13 gang in Honduras killed her sister, thinking it was her and killed her nephew with a machete. She hopes she will be able to tell a judge this information before he makes a decision.
“We believe she will be deported to her death. We believe she will be killed. We believe her son will be killed,” Burrola said.
Burrola said the request for a stay will be argued in court, but judges rarely allow a stay. She hopes the details of the case will convince them to help Maria and her son.
Read more top trending stories on wsoctv.com: