A retired NYPD cop finally got the green light to bring his adopted 9-year-old son to the United States from Thailand after a three-year battle.
“Am I a real American now?” the boy asked former Officer Raymond O’Prey and his wife as he gave the couple a tearful hug upon arriving on US soil in Honolulu last month.
The family’s first stop was Costco, where the child, nicknamed “Mick,” indulged in an all-American lunch of hot dogs and pizza.
“Wow! Is everything better in America?” he asked.
The happy homecoming came after Mick’s visa application had been rejected twice by the US Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review.
O’Prey adopted Mick, who is the biological grandson of his wife, Jamriang, in 2011. But immigration officials told them they had not provided enough evidence to prove they had been his legal guardians for a mandatory two years.
O’Prey’s lawyer, Peter Gleason, wrote a letter to US Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) in February. Once the lawmaker was made aware off the situation, he went to bat for the O’Preys, helping to pave the way for the necessary visa.
The Post first reported on the struggle, too, and soon after an article appeared in the paper, the family received a phone call from the US Embassy in Bangkok with good news: Their son would finally be issued his visa.
“Without the New York Post bringing to light my family’s immigration problem, our American dream would have been that, a dream,” O’Prey said.
“The manner in which Sen. Schumer assisted my family in navigating the immigration process, via the Bangkok Embassy, is commendable,’’ he added, “and was in the nick of time, as we are presently in the midst of a military coup here.”
Schumer said in a statement, “Bringing families together is an incredibly fulfilling part of this job, so I’m thrilled that Mick finally has his visa and the entire family can return to the great city of New York.’’
The O’Preys were able to spend 13 sunny days in Hawaii visiting family members, including O’Prey’s daughter, who was about to undergo surgery for a brain tumor, before they returned to Thailand on May 16, Mick’s birthday.
O’Prey said he and his wife returned to Thailand with Mick so that he could finish out the school year there before they head to New York City in October.
The former cop said his son can’t wait to see the Big Apple — and his beloved Yankees.
“After a full day learning to surf, he asked, ‘When can we go see the Yankees?’ confused that they don’t play on Maui,” O’Prey said. “We brought him to Little League practice — he is hooked for life.”