US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers detained a 5-year-old boy on Tuesday during an enforcement operation, Minnesota school officials have said, as part of an immigration crackdown in the state.
Pre-schooler Liam Ramos was with his father - named by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias - when Conejo Arias was approached by agents on his driveway.
In a statement posted on X, the DHS said "ICE did NOT target a child", but was conducting an operation against his father, an "illegal alien" who "abandoned" his son when approached.
Zena Stenvik, the Columbia Heights Public Schools superintendent, asked: "Why detain a 5-year-old?
"You can't tell me that this child is going to be classified as a violent criminal."
