A refugee inmate firefighter in California is facing deportation to country he’s never visited

Even though Phi Pham, 30, has never been to Vietnam, the US considers him a citizen of the country

A California prisoner who was born in a refugee camp is being deported from the US to Vietnam despite his service as an inmate firefighter.

Phi Pham, 30, was due to be released early from Folsom State Prison prison in Represa due to good behavior and working as an inmate firefighter and firehouse cook.

In prison, he completed education courses and in his last year, got accepted into the firefighting program. During his time in the program, he put out fires, helped inmates and staff with health problems.

However a judge has since ordered that Pham should be deported to Vietnam - his parents’ birthplace but a country he has never visited, and barely speaks the language.

Pham is currently being detained by US Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in a federal facility in Colorado.

Even though Pham has never been to Vietnam, nor has a birth certificate from the country, the US considers him a citizen of the country.

“I barely speak the language,” Pham told The SF Chronicle. “I don’t even know who to talk to. I don’t even know who to call.”

Born in a refugee camp in the Philippines, Pham and his Vietnamese parents fled to the US on a refugee status before Pham was one. While Pham became a permanent resident, he never became a naturalized citizen.

Ten years ago, Pham was convicted for shooting a man during a fight.

In 2008, Washington and Hanoi signed a repatriation agreement that prevented deportation for Vietnamese nationals who arrived in the US before 1995.

But despite this agreement, Donald Trump subsequently deported Vietnamese people who arrived in the country before that date.

Even though Pham came to the US in 1991, it’s unclear if the 2008 agreement will protect him from deportation.

Immigration officials must obtain travel documents from the Vietnamese government for Pham— a process that can take months. But ICE can only hold detainees for 90 days so Pham may be released in the meantime.

Pham can also be freed if he gets a gubernatorial pardon from California Governor Gavin Newsom.