NJ restaurant closed after ICE arrests owners, son says

✅ ICE agents initially took Celal and Emine Emanet into custody

✅ Emine Emanet was taken to a detention facility

✅ The family had a pending immigration case

UPDATE: NJ official blames 'co-president' Elon Musk for ICE arrest of restaurant owners

HADDON — The son of the owners of a Camden County restaurant says ICE agents took his mother into custody early Tuesday morning.

Muhammed Emanet told CBS Philadelphia the armed agents were already at Jersey Kebab, a Mediterranean restaurant on Haddon Avenue, when he arrived for work. His mother, Emine, was handcuffed in the back while his father Celal was sitting in a chair.

His mother was taken to an unknown immigration camp while his father was released with an ankle bracelet, Emanet told CBS Philadelphia.

According to its website, the restaurant is closed for a “family emergency,” their website says.

In a message posted to the Facebook page of fellow restaurant owner Vanessa Crupi, Emanet said his parents are not U.S. citizens but have a case pending with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. He said someone reported his parents to ICE as “illegals” and is looking for letters of support from the community to present during their court hearing.

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Nine-year investigation into their status

A GoFundMe campaign that collected $20,000 in less than 24 hours said the family has had an open immigration case since 2016.

"USCIS has not decided whether to approve or deny their green card application for the past 9 years. While waiting for their case to be decided upon, Celal and Emine Emanet were left without a status," organizer Lori Weinberg Leonard said.

The campaign is also pushing for Emine to be released so the restaurant can reopen. The page also says that if Emine were to be deported, it would cause "immense distress" for her son, who is autistic and only speaks Turkish, according to the campaign.

ICE did not respond to New Jersey 101.5's request for more information on Wednesday morning.

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