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Thursday, January 22, 2026  
02 Shaban 1447  

ICE detains four children from Minnesota school district, school officials say

Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman denied that a child was targeted
1 min read
A person raises a sign in protest against US Customs Enforcement and Immigration (ICE) during a demonstration outside a dormant prison that is under contract to become an ICE detention centre in Hudson, Colorado, US. – Reuters
A person raises a sign in protest against US Customs Enforcement and Immigration (ICE) during a demonstration outside a dormant prison that is under contract to become an ICE detention centre in Hudson, Colorado, US. – Reuters

US immigration authorities detained at least four children, including a 5-year-old from a Minneapolis-area school district, this month, school district officials said on Thursday.

The report comes amid concerns over the scope and tactics of federal law enforcement officers as part of US President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, which has seen 3,000 officers deployed to Minnesota’s largest city.

Trump has described the crackdown as a battle to get violent criminals out of the US.

“Why detain a 5-year-old?” Zena Stenvik, the Columbia Heights Public Schools district superintendent, said at a Wednesday press conference, according to US media. “You cannot tell me that this child is going to be classified as a violent criminal.”

Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin on Thursday denied that a child was targeted.

“ICE did NOT target a child,“ she said in a statement. ICE conducted a targeted operation on Tuesday to arrest Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, who she said was in the country illegally. “As agents approached the driver, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, fled on foot—abandoning his child. For the child’s safety, one of our ICE officers remained with the child while the other officers apprehended Conejo Arias,” she said.

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