Liam Conejo, a five-year-old Ecuadorian boy, and his father, Adrian Conejo, were released this Sunday from the Family Detention Center in Dilley, Texas, where they had remained since January 22 after being detained by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service (ICE) in Minneapolis. The release came on the orders of federal judge Fred Biery, who called the detention part of an “ill-conceived and incompetently implemented” operation aimed at meeting daily deportation quotas.
The arrest occurred when the family was returning to their home in Minneapolis after Adrian picked Liam up from school. Witnesses cited by international media reported that an ICE agent took the child by the backpack and asked him to call his mother, who was observing the scene from the window of her house. Later, both were transferred to the detention center in Texas, a procedure that generated national and international outrage due to Liam’s young age and the conditions of the operation.
During his stay at Dilley, the boy showed signs of depression and changes in his sleeping habits, according to what his father told Democratic Congressman Joaquín Castro, who visited the center along with other legislators to verify the family’s conditions. Castro highlighted the need for the detention of minors in immigration operations to be handled with humanitarian criteria.
Judge Biery noted that the detention arose from “the government’s pursuit of daily deportation quotas, even if it means traumatizing children,” and stressed that any decision on possible deportation should be made under more orderly and humane policies.
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Following the court order, Castro accompanied Liam and his father back to Minneapolis. On his
Liam’s case is part of a series of federal operations in Minneapolis that, in the last month, have provoked massive protests and criticism about the treatment of migrants, especially minors. The boy’s arrest became especially symbolic due to the commotion generated by the viral photograph in which federal agents removed him from his home.
The Liam school district celebrated the release and emphasized the importance of “all children being released from detention centers and families unjustly separated being reunited,” as the debate continues over immigration policies affecting families with minor children.