Ask Onix
Father and son reunited with family in Minnesota
A five-year-old boy and his father, detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Minnesota, have returned home after a federal judge intervened, Texas Congressman Joaquin Castro announced on Sunday.
Detention sparks protests and judicial rebuke
Liam Conejo Ramos and his father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, were released from a detention center in Dilley, Texas, following an emergency order by U.S. District Judge Fred Biery. The judge condemned their detention as a result of what he described as a "perfidious lust for unbridled power" and criticized the government's pursuit of deportation quotas, even at the cost of traumatizing children.
"The case has its genesis in the ill-conceived and incompetently implemented government pursuit of daily deportation quotas, apparently even if it requires traumatizing children."
U.S. District Judge Fred Biery
Biery, appointed by former President Bill Clinton, emphasized that deportations should occur in a more orderly and humane manner.
Conflicting accounts of detention
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) stated that ICE did not target or arrest a child, asserting that the pair entered the U.S. illegally. However, the family's lawyer, Marc Prokosch, countered that they followed all legal protocols to seek asylum after arriving from Ecuador in 2024. Prokosch noted that the family used the CBP One app, scheduled an appointment, and presented themselves to Customs and Border Protection.
"This family was not eluding ICE in any way. They were following all the established protocols pursuing their claim for asylum, showing up for their court hearings and pose no safety, no flight risk, and never should have been detained."
Marc Prokosch, family lawyer
ICE and school officials clash over incident
Reports about the initial ICE operation differ. School officials claimed that Liam had just returned from preschool when an ICE agent asked him to knock on his family's door to check for others inside. A school board member, Mary Granlund, stated she offered to take the boy, but ICE refused and detained him.
ICE denied detaining the child, posting on X (formerly Twitter) that the father abandoned Liam while fleeing officers. The agency claimed it ensured the boy's safety in freezing temperatures and that the father requested Liam remain with him.
Vice President JD Vance supported ICE's actions, telling reporters that the father's decision to flee left the agency with no alternative.
Health scare halts operations at detention center
Shortly after Liam and his father left the Dilley facility, DHS announced that all movement at the center was suspended after medical staff confirmed two detainees had active measles infections.
Political reactions and next steps
Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, a vocal ICE critic, welcomed Liam and his father back to Minneapolis, thanking Congressman Castro for accompanying them. Meanwhile, DHS reiterated its commitment to enforcing immigration laws, stating it would continue to pursue the arrest and removal of individuals without legal status in the U.S.
