ICE Detains Four Children, Including Five-Year-Old, in Minnesota

Immigration officials in Minnesota are facing scrutiny after school leaders reported that several children, including a five-year-old, were detained during recent operations by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Columbia Heights Public Schools said at least four minors were detained in recent weeks. The reports come amid heightened tension surrounding immigration enforcement in the state, including a recent fatal shooting involving an ICE agent.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) denied that children were targeted. 

A spokesperson, Tricia McLaughlin, said ICE “did NOT target a child” and said that enforcement actions are directed at adults who are unlawfully present in the United States. According to DHS, an operation on 20 January was intended to arrest Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias. Officials said he ran from agents as they approached, leaving his young son behind. 

DHS said one officer remained with the child while others pursued the arrest. The agency added that when a parent is taken into custody, officers ask whether the parent wants the child to remain with them or be placed with a designated guardian.

School officials offered a different account. Superintendent Zena Stenvik said five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos was detained with his father after being picked up from preschool. She questioned the justification for detaining a young child during an enforcement operation.

Stenvik said the incident was not isolated. She reported that on the same day, a 17-year-old student was detained by armed agents while travelling to school without a parent present. She also cited earlier incidents this month, including a ten-year-old girl detained while going to elementary school and later transferred with her mother to a detention centre in Texas, and another 17-year-old detained with her mother at their home.

These accounts, if confirmed, indicate that minors may have been detained during multiple enforcement actions. The reports have raised concerns among educators and community leaders about the treatment of children during immigration operations.

The issue has gained further attention following the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Renee Good by an ICE agent in Minnesota. Federal authorities have also confirmed that thousands of officers have been deployed to the Minneapolis area as part of a broader immigration enforcement effort.

President Donald Trump has described the campaign as focused on removing violent criminals.