When an Ecuadorian pizza delivery man with an outstanding order of deportation showed up to deliver pies at the Fort Hamilton military base in South Brooklyn on Friday, he showed his New York City-issued municipal ID and entered the base, just as he had done before, according to his wife. 

But a military police officer ordered Pablo Villavicencio-Calderon to provide more documentation. He didn't have any, and was detained by the officer, who then called Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE agents showed up and took him to a detention center in New Jersey, where he remains and is expected to be deported, according to the agency.

The case captured the attention of immigration advocates and local politicians Wednesday. They staged a press conference and march, arguing that soldiers should not be deputized to carry out deportation functions. 

Villavicencio-Calderon, who did not have a criminal record but was living in the country without documentation, has two daughters, ages 2 and 3, who are American citizens. His wife, Sandra Chica, is also an American. She started a GoFundMe page to support the family in his absence.

"His main concern now is the babies, because he wants everything for them," she said.  

ICE issued this explanation about the incident: "Villavicencio-Calderon is an illegally present citizen and national of Ecuador. In March 2010, he was granted voluntary departure by an immigration judge, but failed to depart by July 2010 as ordered. As such, his voluntary departure order became a final order of removal and is an ICE fugitive. On June 1, Villavicencio-Calderon was detained by military police officers and turned over to ICE. He remains in ICE custody pending removal."

A spokesperson for Fort Hamilton did not return a call from WNYC but released a statement to BuzzFeed News saying that Villavicencio-Calderon signed a waiver permitting a background check after seeking a standard pass to enter the base. That's when his ICE warrant "was discovered on file," and he was detained. The spokesperson added: "Commanders are authorized to take reasonably necessary and lawful measures to maintain law and order and protect installation personnel and property."

But in a interview with Telemundo from the jail in Hudson County, N.J., where he is being held, Villavicencio-Calderon called the allegation that he signed a waiver permitting a background check "a lie."

"At no time did I sign a document," he said.

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams said this shouldn't have happened in New York, which calls itself a sanctuary city. "This is sending shockwaves through the immigrant community," he said. "This is unimaginable."

But the Republican congressman who represents the district where Fort Hamilton is located had a different perspective. "Liberal activists are attacking ICE agents and military personnel for following the law in detaining an immigrant reportedly here illegally," U.S. Rep. Dan Donovan said in a statement. "The law is the law, and nobody should be telling the brave men and women in uniform not to enforce it."

Chica said when she showed up at Fort Hamilton to get his vehicle, the pizzas were gone, indicating the soldiers kept them.