5‑Year‑Old Minnesota Boy Detained by ICE, Sparking Outrage
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained a five‑year‑old boy, Liam Conejo Ramos, along with his father on Tuesday as they returned home from preschool.
The incident occurred in the driveway of their home in Columbia Heights, a suburb north of Minneapolis, school officials said.
Superintendent Zena Stenvik of Columbia Heights Public Schools described the scene at a news conference.
She said agents removed Liam from the family’s running car and then told the boy to knock on the front door to check if anyone else was inside. School officials called this use of a child “bait.”
Family’s Immigration Status and Legal Fight
Liam and his father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, are being held in a federal detention facility in Texas, the family’s lawyer said.
Their attorney, Marc Prokosch, said the family has an active asylum claim and no deportation order. They entered the U.S. at a legal port of entry and followed immigration procedures, he told reporters.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson disputed the school’s “bait” claim.
The spokesperson said ICE did not target the child but was conducting a targeted operation to detain the father, whom officials described as an undocumented immigrant. They said agents stayed with the boy while arresting his father.
Wider Impact on Community
The detention of Liam is part of a broader immigration enforcement surge in the Minneapolis area.
School officials said three other students, including a 17‑year‑old and a 10‑year‑old, were also recently detained by ICE along with family members.
Columbia Heights schools have seen lower attendance as families fear being targeted.
Liam’s teacher described him as “kind and loving,” and said classmates miss him. Officials have appealed for community support and legislative attention.
