White House and DHS reject claims ICE targeted 5 year old in Minnesota, say child was 'abandoned'

WASHINGTON, DC: The Department of Homeland Security has pushed back against claims by Minnesota Democrats that a 5-year-old boy was targeted and detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement during an enforcement action, saying the child was instead “abandoned” by his father. At the same time, agents carried out a targeted arrest.

The dispute erupted after Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, Ilhan Omar shared a post for the child online and alleged ICE agents arrested him while he was returning home from preschool. The White House and DHS rejected that account, accusing Democrats and sections of the media of spreading false narratives about ICE operations.

'ICE did not target a child,' says White House

DHS said the incident occurred on January 20 during an operation to arrest Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, described as “an illegal alien from Ecuador,” who was allegedly released into the US by the Biden administration.

"ICE did NOT target a child. The child was ABANDONED," DHS wrote on X on Thursday. "On January 20, ICE conducted a targeted operation to arrest Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, an illegal alien from Ecuador who was RELEASED into the U.S. by the Biden administration."

DHS said Conejo Arias fled on foot as agents approached, leaving the child behind. "As agents approached the driver Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias fled on foot, abandoning his child. For the child’s safety, one of our ICE officers remained with the child while the other officers apprehended Conejo Arias," the agency added.

White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said the administration viewed the claims as part of a broader effort to discredit immigration enforcement.

"It’s shameful that the media so quickly runs with the fake Democrat narrative without first getting the facts," Jackson said in a statement to Fox News Digital. "Here’s the reality: ICE officers work heroically with the utmost professionalism to make American communities safer. In this instance, they stayed with a child who was abandoned by his father — an illegal alien from Ecuador."

White House blames rhetoric around the incident for rising threats against agents

"The media’s lies have consequences - assaults against ICE officers have increased by 1300% because of dangerous smears against them by elected Democrats that are amplified by the press," she said.

DHS said officers attempted multiple times to have the child’s mother take custody but alleged she refused. "Our officer’s made multiple attempts to get the mother inside the house to take custody of her child. Officers even assured her that they would NOT take her into custody. She refused to accept custody of the child," DHS wrote in a separate post.

According to the agency, the father requested that the child remain with him. "The father told officers he wanted the child to remain with him," DHS said, adding that both are now together at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas.

Democrats condemn incident

Minnesota Democrats sharply criticized the operation. Walz wrote on X, "Minnesotans want safety. They want freedom. They want what’s best for our kids. Masked agents snatching preschoolers off the street and sending them to Texas detention centers serves none of those purposes. This campaign of retribution has got to stop."

Omar said the day before, "ICE just detained a 5-year-old child. Don’t tell us this is about ‘the worst of the worst.’ That’s a lie. Absolutely vile."

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also weighed in, writing, "Enforcing the law is one thing. Terrorizing a population, using children as pawns, is another."

ICE’s official X account rejected Clinton’s statement, responding, "THIS IS AN ABJECT LIE."

"The child was ABANDONED by his father, a criminal illegal alien from Ecuador, who fled from our officers. Our officers ensured the child was SAFE," the post said.

School officials raise concerns

Zena Stenvik, superintendent of Columbia Heights Public Schools,  said the child had been taken from a running car in the family’s driveway while returning from preschool. She said the family has an active asylum case and no removal order.

"Why detain a 5-year-old?" Stenvik said, according to The Associated Press. "You cannot tell me that this child is going to be classified as a violent criminal."

The boy and his father were being held in a family holding cell in Texas, the family’s lawyer Marc Prokosch said during a news conference on January 21, according to the Associated Press.

Stenvik said the child is the fourth student from the district detained by ICE in recent weeks.