A MONTESSORI WORKER from Georgia who has been living and working in Ireland since 2022 is now awaiting deportation alongside her four-year-old son after her husband was arrested.

She is in the dark on when and how they will be deported, and she has not yet been able to visit her husband in prison. 

Keti (28) was working fulltime as a childcare practitioner in Greystones, while her husband Georgi (33) was working as a driver for a construction company.

Eleven days ago he was arrested by Gardaí, who Keti say arrived unannounced in the evening, and taken to Cloverhill Prison.

Keti said that the family were shocked by the arrest, as they had received communication by Gardaí that they were to present themselves for deportation later this month, and they had complied with all previous summonses.

“We had also applied for the order to be revoked in an appeal through our solicitor on 16 April, and as of yet we have had no reply from the Department of Justice. We submitted new evidence that would mean our application for asylum would be more likely to be accepted,” she said.

“We have complied with everything they have asked us to do, so why have they put my husband in prison. We have paid our taxes here and we both work hard, and our son goes to school, we were awaiting a decision on an appeal,” Keti added.

In Ireland the Garda National Immigration Bureau can make an arrest at any point when someone has overstayed the date they were asked to leave the country by. 

Though many people are allowed to remain in the community until they are actually being deported, someone can be held in detention for up to eight weeks prior to deportation. 

Immigration lawyer Cathal Malone that there has been a sort of “cruel and brutal logic” to husband’s being arrested in advance of families being deported. 

“If you have arrested the father several weeks ahead of time, then you know that the mother and children are much less likely to evade at that point. If the husband or the dad is in custody or is being deported, it’s more likely his family will go with him,” Malone said. 

Keti said her husband’s arrest was “terrifying”.

“As we did not know they were coming I was trying to shield my son from what was happening. I took him to a neighbour’s house. I tried to ask the gardaí and the immigration officers for more details but I became weak, and collapsed. My husband was taken away,” she said.

“I have told my son that his daddy is away for work but he witnessed a little of what happened, and he is not sleeping well,” she added.

Giorgi was arrested at the IPAS centre in Bray where the family have been living.

Keti said that the family were being targeted by organised criminals in Georgia on a discriminatory basis and it will not be safe for them to return.

“Our family has been threatened, and my father has been attacked as a result since the deportation order was made in March, so we appealed the decision on that basis. I do not believe it will be safe for my son,” she said.

Keti’s employer provided a reference supporting her application which stated that she is a valued part of the team in the childcare facility she works in.

“She is kind, loving and empathetic and her relationship with the children is very meaningful,” the employer said.

The manager of the Montessori her son attends said that the 4-year-old developed speech late, and that he only speaks English.

“He is at a critical stage in his development and continuity of care, language and social surroundings are crucial now.

“He has formed secure attachments and is progressing in our english speaking environment,” the manager said, adding that the child’s development should be taken into “serious consideration’.

The third deportation flight out of Ireland this year went to Nigeria last week. The deportation of five children on the flight sparked criticism from opposition politicians and the principal of the school that some of the children attended.

In response, the Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan said that banning child deportations would make Ireland’s current immigration system “untenable”.

The Department of Justice told The Journal that the enforcement of deportation orders is essential in order to ensure the public have confidence “in the application of our legislation in this area”. 

They added that enforced removals are carried out as a matter of last resort after people have not left voluntarily. 

The spokesperson said that in 2025 to date 106 people have been removed on chartered flights and 54 deportation orders have been enforced on commercial flights. 

“Most of these cases have involved periods of detention prior to departure,” they added. 

Additionally, 23 people with deportation orders have left voluntarily this year.