A 5-year-old boy and his father, who were detained by US immigration officials several days ago, have been released and have returned home following a court order for their release.
Foreign news agencies reported that the 5-year-old boy and his father, who were held by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for several days, have been freed and returned home after a court ordered their release.
Joaquin Castro, a Democratic Congressman from Texas, announced on Sunday (1 Feb 2026) that Liam Conejo Ramos and his father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, were released from the Dilley detention center in Texas and have returned home to Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Their detention sparked protests outside the detention facility and led to widespread national criticism, while the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) stated in a release that "ICE does not target or detain children."
"Illegal alien criminals have abandoned their children while fleeing ICE agents, and our officers have ensured that this child remained safe amid the cold weather," ICE said via X.
However, Mark Progosh, the family's attorney, confirmed that the father and son "did everything correctly" since traveling from Ecuador to the US in 2024. They passed immigration checkpoints to apply for asylum, used the CBP One app for appointments, presented themselves to Customs and Border Protection officers, and provided the government with complete information.
"This family did not flee ICE at all. They followed all required procedures in submitting their asylum request, appeared in court as scheduled, posed no security threat, had no risk of absconding, and should never have been detained in the first place," Progosh added.
The father and son's return home followed a US District Court judge, Fred Biery, approving an emergency petition from the family's lawyers and ordering their release on Saturday, condemning the detention as a result of "shameful unchecked thirst for power."
"This case began with the government recklessly and ineffectively trying to meet daily deportation quotas, seemingly willing to inflict psychological harm on children," Biery said in his ruling, adding that US immigration deportations should be conducted under more orderly and humane policies than currently practiced.
Earlier, the US Department of Homeland Security claimed the father and son entered the country illegally, while the family's attorney insisted they followed proper asylum application procedures.
On Sunday, the Department of Homeland Security told CBS News in a statement, "The Trump administration is committed to restoring the rule of law and common sense to our immigration system and will continue to fight to detain and deport aliens unlawfully present in this country."
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Source:bbc