By Keerthi Ramesh,
A 5-year-old boy held with his father at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in South Texas is showing signs of emotional distress after days in custody, a Democratic lawmaker said Wednesday as protests over the case intensified.
Texas Rep. Joaquin Castro spent more than a half-hour with the child, identified as Liam Conejo Ramos, and his father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, where families are housed during immigration proceedings. Castro told reporters the boy appeared lethargic and withdrawn, saying he had been sleeping excessively and seemed “depressed and sad” since being detained.
Castro said the father described Liam as not being “himself,” adding that the child asked frequently about his family and school during their brief encounter. A federal judge has temporarily blocked the deportation of the father and son, an order that prevents the government from moving them out of the court’s jurisdiction while they challenge their detention.
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The boy and his father were taken into custody last week in Columbia Heights, Minnesota, after a multiagency immigration enforcement operation in the MinneapolisSt. Paul area. School officials in Minneapolis alleged that federal agents told the child to knock on his family’s door as part of an effort to locate others, a characterization that immigration authorities have disputed.
Images of Liam, clad in a blue hat and carrying a Spider-Man backpack as he was escorted by agents, spread widely on social media and became a focal point in a national debate over immigration enforcement. The family, originally from Ecuador, had applied for asylum in late 2024, according to public records.
The detention has drawn sharp criticism from advocacy groups and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. Protesters gathered outside the Dilley facility on Wednesday, demanding Liam’s immediate release and broader changes to U.S. immigration policy. Texas state police at the scene deployed tear gas and pepper balls to disperse the crowd after some demonstrators advanced on the center’s perimeter, authorities said.
Castro and other Democrats have framed the case as emblematic of what they call overly aggressive federal immigration tactics under the Trump administration. They argue that detaining young children inflicts unnecessary psychological harm and that families seeking asylum should not face such treatment while their cases are adjudicated.
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Officials with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have defended the operation, saying the father was subject to arrest and that procedures are in place to care for minors accompanying detained adults. DHS has denied using the child as a “bait” tactic, despite assertions from local educators and community members.
Legal advocates for the family have said the pair should be released on parole while their asylum claims proceed, noting that prolonged detention can disrupt children’s education and emotional development. As the debate continues in court and on Capitol Hill, Liam’s case has put renewed focus on the human impact of immigration enforcement policies.