A Navy sailor, on his way home after a long deployment aboard the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln in support of the war with Iran, said his father had been detained by immigration authorities in the United States.

“I’ve been deployed for over nine months, out at sea in the Middle East aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, fighting for a country that has given me everything,” the sailor, Joshua Aviles, wrote on Facebook on Saturday. He said his father, Luis Manuel Aviles, 48, had a driver’s license, Social Security card and a permit to work in the United States.

“We have done everything through immigration to get his green card approved, and we are just waiting,” Mr. Aviles wrote.

The post has generated widespread attention, partly because of recent reports about poor conditions aboard the carrier caused by supply challenges following Iran’s destruction of a U.S. Navy base in Bahrain. On Thursday, the beleaguered carrier, deployed in support of the war in Iran, started its journey home to San Diego, a voyage of about 13,000 miles.

“This is heartbreaking for me,” Mr. Aviles added. “I don’t know how I can mentally continue working 12+ hour days knowing that my dad is somewhere, possibly being treated like a criminal. My dad’s only ‘crime’ was coming to this country to give my siblings and me a better life.”

The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement on Monday that Border Patrol officers arrested Luis Manuel Aviles Roa on Saturday during a vehicle stop in Key West, Fla. The statement said the agency did not know when or where he had entered the United States, but said that he was in the country illegally.

“He will remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings,” the statement said.

In his Facebook post, Joshua Aviles said he was notified on Saturday that his father had been taken into custody. “Dad, I don’t know where you are right now, but know that I am doing everything I can to bring you back home,” he wrote. “I love you with all my heart. Please stay strong. I’m coming home, Dad.”

The sailor’s mother, Argelia Aviles, told The Associated Press that Joshua’s father, a handyman, was arrested after leaving his house to take his car to the mechanic. He has lived in the United States for 19 years, The A.P. reported.

The Homeland Security Department’s statement said that military service by an immediate relative “does not automatically grant parole, lawful status, or immunity from immigration enforcement.”

A government program called Parole in Place has served as a recruiting tool for the military; it shields undocumented parents and spouses of service members from deportation and providing an expedited pathway to permanent residency. Service members must apply to be included in the program.

Democratic lawmakers this month expressed concerns about the extended deployment of the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln after reports about poor living conditions and a lack of downtime for its crew of about 5,000 sailors.

Adm. Brad Cooper, who heads U.S. Central Command, said in an opinion essay published in The Wall Street Journal on Aug. 16 that many of the issues were “old news.” He has also acknowledged the difficulty of the long deployment.

President Trump’s second term has been defined by a crackdown on undocumented immigrants. An A.P. investigation this month said more than 50 parents and spouses of active-duty service members had been detained during Mr. Trump’s second term. At least six have been deported and one self-deported, it reported.