ICE faces firestorm over allegations of using 5-year-old as bait in Minnesota

The Department of Homeland Security is disputing allegations from a Minnesota school district that immigration agents used a 5-year-old boy as "bait" to arrest his father.

Officials with the Columbia Heights School District claim that Liam Ramos and his father were apprehended at the entrance of their home shortly after the boy returned from school. School officials further allege that federal agents used the child to knock on the door to determine if anyone else was inside the residence.

DHS officials denied targeting the child, stating the father fled from a vehicle and abandoned the boy. The agency said one agent stayed with the child for safety reasons while others arrested the father, whom they described as an undocumented immigrant from Ecuador.

DHS further alleged that the boy's mother was inside the home but refused to take the child back.

A lawyer for the family contested the government's characterization, stating the family entered the United States legally through a port of entry in 2024. The attorney said the family used the CBP One app to officially seek asylum.

The school district reported that three other students have also been arrested recently. The incidents come amid a surge in immigration enforcement across Minnesota led by DHS agencies.

One official confirmed that 3,000 people have been arrested in the region over the last six weeks.

The immigration enforcement action in Minnesota has transcended the scope of a routine arrest, evolving into a high-stakes narrative battle between federal authorities and local civil institutions. By alleging that federal agents used children as "bait" to lure parents into custody, the local school district has framed a provocative image of enforcement tactics that forced a forceful rebuttal from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The Department’s decision to label these claims a "horrific smear" underscores an acute sensitivity within the administration regarding the optics of inhumane enforcement.

Perhaps most revealing is the DHS defense that its actions were "consistent with immigration enforcement under previous administrations." This serves as a tacit acknowledgment of policy continuity, suggesting that the hardline tactics frequently associated with the Trump era remain embedded in the current operational framework. Such a stance invites scrutiny over whether the fundamental paradigm of U.S. immigration policy has actually shifted, or merely been rebranded.

The incident further highlights a significant disconnect between the administration’s public commitment to prioritizing the removal of "dangerous criminals" and the reality on the ground. According to legal counsel, the Ramos family represents the antithesis of a security threat: asylum seekers who had engaged with formal legal channels via the CBP One app. This discrepancy undermines the government’s enforcement rationale and suggests that the scope of current operations remains broad enough to ensnare those adhering to established legal protocols.

Ultimately, the friction in Minnesota illustrates a growing trend where civil society—specifically school districts and local legal advocacy groups—is becoming the primary front line in monitoring and challenging federal overreach. As these local entities assert their role as watchdogs, the struggle over immigration enforcement is increasingly being fought not just in the courts, but in the court of public opinion.

Stories of family separation and aggressive federal immigration enforcement strike a deep chord within the Vietnamese-American community. For many of us, these reports evoke long-standing memories of instability and the struggle of navigating a labyrinthine immigration system—from the years-long wait for F2B family reunions to the complexities of H-1B, EB-5, and TPS statuses. Even when a specific incident doesn't directly touch our community, it serves as a stark reminder of the hurdles many faced to build lives in Little Saigon, establish our nail salons and phở restaurants, and maintain the vital remittances that support our loved ones back home.