Officer Granted Delay in Effort to Stay in U.S.

A former British bobby turned-Santa Monica police officer won a round in his fight against deportation and will be allowed to remain in the United States pending an appeal of his immigration status.

Officer Ian Page, 38, is an illegal alien, according to the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Page contends he was the victim of a fraud in which he unwittingly received phony work papers.

Page, a six-year Santa Monica police veteran, faced a June 15 deadline to leave the country, but now will be allowed to stay indefinitely.

Officials from the Justice Department in Washington on Friday instructed the INS to stay any deportation efforts until his appeal is heard. INS District Director Ernest Gustafson said the action was routine.

“It is evident this guy is not going to be leaving for a couple years,” said Page’s attorney, David Ross.

If the case before the Board of Immigration Appeals is denied, other legal recourse can be sought, Ross said.

Gustafson said he still believes Page, along with his wife and son, will have to leave the United States.

“I am confident he will leave,” Gustafson said.