MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) -- Illegal immigration charges have been dismissed against a Canadian man who served as a reserve sheriff's deputy in southeast Alabama.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Wallace Capel dismissed the charges Monday at about the same time the 46-year-old Henry County reserve deputy, Kevin Dwight Venhuis, was scheduled to appear before him for a hearing.

Venhuis volunteered as a reserve deputy for the sheriff's department for 25 years. His immigration status became an issue when he was divorced from his wife, an American citizen. He was arrested last week during a traffic stop.

Bryan Cox, a spokesman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said the government asked that the charges be dismissed, but he did not give a reason.