A five-year-old boy, Liam Conejo Ramos, was detained alongside his father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, during a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation outside their Columbia Heights home on Tuesday 20 January. School officials and the family’s lawyer say both were transported to a family holding facility in Texas, and that three other students from the district have been detained in recent weeks. (apnews.com)
The Department of Homeland Security said the child was not a target. Spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin stated that agents approached to arrest the father, who “fled on foot - abandoning his child,” adding that an officer stayed with the boy for safety and that parents are offered the choice to be removed with their children or designate a safe caregiver. (nbcnewyork.com)
Columbia Heights Public Schools disputes parts of that account. Superintendent Zena Stenvik told reporters another adult at the home asked to take the child inside but was refused, and said agents directed the boy to knock on the door to check if others were present. A district-shared photo shows an officer holding the child’s backpack; the family’s lawyer said father and son were held together in a Texas family cell. (apnews.com)
Policy context matters. On 20 January 2025, DHS rescinded prior restrictions on enforcement in or near “protected areas” such as schools, replacing them with broad officer discretion. That change-set out on ICE’s own guidance page-means arrests linked to school runs or outside homes near schools are no longer presumptively off-limits under agency policy. (ice.gov)
ICE also points to its Detained Parents Directive (Directive 11064.4, issued 2 July 2025), which instructs officers to account for a parent’s caregiving responsibilities, facilitate participation in child welfare and court proceedings, and document placements. The directive is internal policy and expressly creates no private rights, but it frames what families can expect after an arrest. (ice.gov)
Officials presented the Minnesota action as part of a wider enforcement surge. U.S. Customs and Border Protection official Greg Bovino said this month that operations in the Twin Cities are “lawful” and “targeted” at individuals who pose a serious threat, citing thousands of recent arrests. (apnews.com)
Local tensions have intensified since the 7 January fatal shooting of Minneapolis resident Renée Good by a federal immigration officer, an incident that prompted protests and scrutiny of federal tactics. National reporting notes conflicting accounts and ongoing inquiries into the use of force. (washingtonpost.com)
The White House has moved to defend the surge. Vice President JD Vance is scheduled to visit Minneapolis on Thursday 22 January to meet agents and deliver remarks billed as focused on “restoring law and order,” a trip his office has framed as an effort to calm tensions. (cbsnews.com)
For schools and families, the immediate implications are practical. Columbia Heights officials report sharp drops in attendance and say many pupils come from immigrant households. Under ICE policy, detained parents are asked to designate a safe carer or to remain with their children in custody; where that is contested or unclear, child welfare coordination follows under the agency’s parental interests procedures. (apnews.com)
Several points remain unresolved in this case, including whether a handover to another adult at the scene was practicable and whether further transfers will occur. DHS has maintained that the operation was targeted at the father; the district and the family’s lawyer continue to question the necessity and handling of the child’s detention. (nbcnewyork.com)