US moves to deport five-year-old Ecuadorean boy detained in Minnesota
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Five-year-old Ecuadorean Liam Conejo Ramos being detained by US federal immigration agents in January 2026.
PHOTOS: X, NYTIMES
- DHS seeks to deport five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos, detained in Minnesota, following standard removal proceedings, says spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin.
- Liam and his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, were detained in Texas until a judge ordered their release; they'd entered the US legally as asylum applicants.
- Lawyer Danielle Molliver called the deportation move "extraordinary" and possibly "retaliatory," though the DHS denies expedited removal.
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WASHINGTON – The US Department of Homeland Security said on Feb 6 it is seeking to deport a five-year-old Ecuadorean boy who was detained in Minnesota in January.
The department, which has federal oversight of immigration enforcement, denied that it was seeking expedited removal after a lawyer for the boy, Liam Conejo Ramos, told The New York Times that the Trump administration was seeking an expedited deportation.
The lawyer, Ms Danielle Molliver, described the move as “extraordinary” and possibly “retaliatory”.
“These are regular removal proceedings,” department spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said, adding that “this is standard procedure and there is nothing retaliatory about enforcing the nation’s immigration laws”.
Lawyers for Liam and the US Department of Justice did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Liam and his father, Mr Adrian Conejo Arias, who both entered the US legally as asylum applicants, were detained at a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in Dilley, Texas, until a judge ordered their release
They returned to Minnesota following their release.
The Trump administration defended the move, with the US Department of Homeland Security accusing Mr Conejo Arias of being in the US illegally, without providing additional details.
The case of the five-year-old, who was photographed wearing a blue bunny hat and Spider-Man backpack outside his house when federal agents apprehended him,
US President Donald Trump and top officials have said in recent weeks that they aimed to de-escalate tensions in Minnesota after Mr Trump deployed thousands of agents to the state as part of his immigration crackdown.
Protests have erupted across Minnesota in opposition to the deployment of immigration agents, who have fatally shot two US citizens in the state. REUTERS
