US releases 5-year-old boy detained by ICE

Five-year-old Liam, who was detained by ICE agents in Minnesota, has returned home after 10 days in a Texas detention center.

Liam, 5, and his father, Adrian, were released from the Dilley detention center. "I picked them up and brought them back to Minnesota this morning. Liam is home. Thank you to everyone who advocated for Liam's freedom. We won't stop until all children and their families are home," Democratic Congressman Joaquin Castro posted on social media platform X on 1/2, alongside photos of the boy.

Adrian Conejo Arias and his son Liam Conejo Ramos leave the Dilley Immigration Processing Center, Texas on 31/1. Video: X/Joaquin Castro

Liam Conejo Ramos and his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, asylum seekers from Ecuador, were arrested by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on 20/1 at the entrance of their home in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The incident occurred just minutes after the boy returned from preschool.

Images of the boy wearing a blue rabbit-ear beanie, carrying a backpack, and being restrained by agents went viral globally, sparking outrage over the Donald Trump administration's immigration crackdown. Liam and his father were held for 10 days in a Texas detention center, hundreds of kilometers from their home, until a judge ordered their release on 31/1.

Liam at his home in Minneapolis, Minnesota on 1/2. Photo: X/Joaquin Castro

US officials explained that ICE had to arrest the boy because his father attempted to flee. During a visit to the detention center last month, Congressman Castro stated that Conejo Arias described his son as sad and withdrawn. "The father said the boy was not himself anymore," he posted on X at the time.

Federal Judge Fred Biery, who ordered the release of Liam and his father, stated that the arrest stemmed from officials "trying to meet daily deportation quotas in an ill-considered and poorly executed manner, even when such actions cause psychological harm to children."

He also cited the Fourth Amendment of the US Constitution, which protects people from "unreasonable searches and seizures."

Minnesota is currently a hotspot for US government immigration enforcement campaigns, with approximately 3,000 agents deployed. Protests are ongoing in several cities, and the Trump administration has also faced pressure after two instances where ICE agents fatally shot citizens.