A US federal judge has ordered the release of a five-year-old boy and his father from an immigration detention centre in Texas, following their arrest by immigration enforcement officers in Minneapolis earlier this month.
Liam Conejo Ramos, an Ecuadorian child, was detained alongside his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, on 20 January. The pair were arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents as the boy returned from school. Images of Liam wearing a bunny hat and plaid coat went viral, prompting widespread criticism after allegations that he was used as 'bait' to lure his mother out of the family home.
US District Judge Fred Biery ruled on Saturday that the case stemmed from 'the ill-conceived and incompetently-implemented government pursuit of daily deportation quotas, apparently even if it requires traumatising children'. In a previous ruling, Judge Biery had already barred the removal of the pair from the United States. The latest order includes a photograph of Liam and references two Bible verses: 'Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them”' and 'Jesus Wept.'
The Department of Homeland Security disputed the claim that the child was used as bait, posting on social media that instead 'the child was ABANDONED'. However, the superintendent of Liam’s school district, Zena Stenvik, stated that when an adult in the home begged agents to let them care for the child, the request was refused, and the agent directed the five-year-old to knock on the door.
Texas Congressmen Joaquin Castro and Jasmine Crockett visited Liam and his father at the detention centre, where Castro reported that Liam appeared tired and was not eating well. The family’s lawyer told CNN that Liam and his family originally from Ecuador had presented themselves to border officers in Texas in December 2024 to apply for asylum, and their claims remain pending.
