Five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and his father have safely returned to their home in a Minneapolis suburb after being detained by U.S. immigration officers and held in a Texas facility, a lawmaker said on Sunday.
A federal judge ordered the release of Adrian Conejo Arias and his son on Saturday, citing constitutional concerns over the use of administrative warrants and the trauma caused by immigration enforcement operations. U.S. Representative Joaquin Castro, a Texas Democrat, personally escorted the pair back to Minnesota. “Liam is now home. With his hat and his backpack,” Castro wrote on social media. “We won’t stop until all children and families are home.”
@dailymail A federal judge has blocked the possible deportation of a five-year-old boy and his father who have been detained in Texas. Photos of Liam Ramos went viral after he was seen wearing a bunny-shaped beanie with tears streaming down his face while being held by his backpack, as ICE agents descended on his home and arrested his father. Liam Ramos’s mother has reported that the child is getting sick due to the quality of the food at the facility, saying, “He has stomach pain, he’s vomiting, he has a fever and he no longer wants to eat.” #liamramos #ICE #minneapolis #minnesota #usa ♬ original sound – Daily Mail
The Ecuadorean father and son had been taken into custody during a Minneapolis-area raid. A viral photo last month showed Liam in a blue bunny hat outside his home with federal agents nearby. They were among four children detained by immigration officials, according to the Columbia Heights Public School District.
Judge Fred Biery, appointed by former President Bill Clinton, criticized the government for implementing daily deportation quotas “even if it requires traumatizing children,” and highlighted that arrests must be based on judicially approved warrants, not administrative orders.
The case has intensified calls by Democratic lawmakers for reforms to ICE operations, including mandatory body cameras, ending roving patrols, and restricting the use of face coverings by agents. The situation comes amid broader political disputes over Homeland Security funding and federal immigration enforcement policies, including recent deadly incidents in Minneapolis involving ICE agents.
Some Republican local officials, including Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt, have also urged adjustments to federal enforcement tactics, citing the erosion of trust between authorities and residents when immigration operations are perceived as heavy-handed.
