Hours after agents of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection detained him for attempting to leave a Texas border town without a valid visa, authorities released Jose Antonio Vargas released after being processed.

Vargas, a former journalist who began advocating undocumented immigrants like himself, walked out of the McAllen Border Patrol Station early evening Tuesday. He was ordered to appear before an immigration judge, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

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In a statement, homeland security spokeswoman Marsha Catron said federal agents accosted Vargas "after he stated that he was in the country illegally."

Afterwards, agents took him to the border patrol station for processing, and was given a "Notice to Appear before an immigration judge," the official said.

"He was released on his own recognizance after consultation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)," she continued.

Catron likewise clarified that Vargas was never placed under arrest by the ICE, "nor has the agency ever issued a detainer on him or encountered him."

"ICE is focused on smart, effective immigration enforcement that prioritizes the agency's resources to promote border security and to identify and remove criminal individuals who pose a threat to public safety and national security," she pointed out.

Vargas went to McAllen with a camera crew from his nonprofit Define American to film the plight of undocumented minors being held there. The border crisis forced the White House to place an emergency budget request of $3.7 billion.

He was supposed to fly out of McAllen on Tuesday morning, heading to Los Angeles for a screening of his documentary titled "Documented."

Tagsimmigration, Jose Antonio Vargas, immigration crisis