Emine Emanet, Jersey Kebab owner, appreciates community support

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The owners of a well-known restaurant in Haddon Township spoke with reporters Friday for the first time since their arrest by federal immigration officers.

Officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested Celal and Emine Emanet on Feb. 25 at their restaurant, Jersey Kebab, because of their immigration status. At the time of the arrest, they were preparing to cook a large catering order.

“My father has a truckload of groceries that’s outside because we open on Tuesdays, we close on Mondays,” said Muhammed Emanet, the couple’s son. “He just looks at me, he’s like, ‘Go unload the truck.’ And my mom goes, ‘Go finish the catering order’ as they’re getting taken out in handcuffs.”

Celal Emanet was released later that day with an ankle monitor. Emine Emanet was held for two weeks.

When asked what it’s like to have his mother back home, Muhammed Emanet said “it’s amazing, man.”

“My mom is truly, not only the anchor of this business, but the anchor of our household,” he said. “When you lift the anchor on a ship, the ship just cruises back and forth without no real control. And without my mom being here for two weeks … we’re just sailing back and forth, no real control.”

Emine Emanet was released Wednesday from a detention center in Elizabeth, New Jersey, after the Brooklyn-based nonprofit Envision Freedom Fund posted her $7,500 bond. Rosa Santana, the nonprofit’s executive director, was critical of “how ICE weaponizes detention and bond to punish immigrant communities.”

“No one should have to endure the pain of separation and uncertainty that Emine and her family have experienced,” she said in a statement. “Families like the Emanets should be living their lives without the fear of being targeted and detained.”