Dad hopeful US detained tourist to be released

There are "positive signs" that a Welsh backpacker detained in a US immigration centre could be flying home in the coming days, her father has said.

Becky Burke, 28, has been held in a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) processing centre for about two weeks, since being denied entry at the US-Canada border.

She was visited by an ICE case officer at the centre on Tuesday, who told her that her "profile had gone up" and she will have to be "put on the priority list", said her father Paul, who lives in Portskewett, Monmouthshire.

Mr Burke believes it is because of the combination of media, social media and diplomatic pressure since her case was first made public earlier this week.

Mr Burke said his daughter was told her case would go to an ICE officer to "schedule her removal".

"This is all good news but we are still trying to understand what it means exactly," he said, adding it "could take up to a week, even 10 days".

Mr Burke said the family were being helped on a pro-bono basis by an immigration lawyer who previously worked for ICE, as well as another legal advisor "who seems very senior".

"They are really trying to help," he said.

Mr Burke said the family was still unsure about the process, and whether the next step would definitely involve deportation.

"We've been told there are other options. We'll have to see. If it is a deportation, that could affect Becky's travel in future as it would have to be disclosed to other countries," he said.

"But it's definitely a positive point. It's got traction and it's moving forward," he said.

Mr Burke added his daughter has had to see a doctor in the detention facility due to a digestive problem.

"That may be because she's vegan and the diet they have been giving her," he said, adding his daughter has been "quite emotional" since the case officer's visit.

"She now thinks she's coming home - and is this really coming to an end? It's an emotional release really."

He added Ms Burke has received a number of visitors, partly due to the high profile around the case.

"People have been turning up to visit her. It's great - but in a way, it could be too many people," he added.

Ms Burke, an artist, began backpacking around the US in January, flying from New York to Portland, Oregon, where she spent time with a host family, helping with household chores in return for accommodation.

At the end of February she travelled to Seattle with plans to travel to Vancouver in Canada to stay with another family.

However, when she reached the border, Mr Burke said the Canadian authorities denied her entry as they were concerned she may try to work illegally.

Ms Burke said she was then "interrogated" by officials in the US, and it was decided she had "violated" her tourist visa there.

Her dad described the situation as a misunderstanding of her accommodation arrangements, which were "just like a cultural exchange".

US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said it could not comment on specific cases for privacy reasons, but said all those arriving "at a port-of-entry to the United States are subject to inspection".

"In the event a foreign national is found inadmissible to the United States, CBP will provide the foreign national an opportunity to procure travel to his or her home country.

"If the foreign national is unable to do so, he or she will be turned over to the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Enforcement Removal Operations (ERO) for repatriation."