Deputy AG denies 5-year-old, father has asylum claim after family released from ICE detention

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said Sunday that the 5-year-old lad and his father, who were detained by ICE successful Minneapolis past month, did not use for asylum, arsenic officials announced that the household was released implicit the weekend.

Blanche said determination person been conflicting claims regarding the ineligible presumption of the boy, Liam Conejo Ramos, and his father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, who entered the U.S. successful 2024, according to nationalist reporting, though officials and the family’s lawyers quality the circumstances of their introduction and asylum processing. Lawyers representing the Ecuadorian household accidental they person an progressive asylum assertion presently being processed, allowing them to stay successful the state pending a tribunal decision.

The lawman lawyer wide denied that they person a pending asylum case, echoing erstwhile claims by the Department of Homeland Security, which described the household arsenic being successful the state illegally.

"That is not true. There’s a precise meaningful quality astir whether they had decently applied for asylum," Blanche said during an quality connected ABC’s "This Week." 

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"I cannot get into the … specifics of this litigation, but you tin work the aforesaid briefs I can. And what you conscionable said is not true."

While immoderate immigrants detained by national agents bash not person anterior transgression records, Blanche added that the Trump medication considers unauthorized introduction into the U.S. a transgression and believes specified individuals should beryllium detained.

U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche arrives for a property league connected August 11, 2025, successful Washington, D.C.  (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

"The information that they’re present illegally is simply a crime," helium said. "And truthful erstwhile you accidental they don’t person transgression records, they are – by their beingness being present without status, having travel into this state illegally oregon overstayed illegally, that is simply a crime."

"There is simply a schism successful the instrumentality close present astir whether an amerciable alien tin beryllium held pending their proceeding oregon whether they request to beryllium released connected bail," helium added. "We precise powerfully judge that they should beryllium held and there’s a clump of appellate cases."

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Liam Conejo Ramos sits with begetter Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias aft getting released from a detention installation successful Texas. (Joaquin Castro)

Blanche’s comments travel aft respective days of wide backlash from attorneys and lawmakers who condemned the cognition that detained the five‑year‑old erstwhile his begetter picked him up from schoolhouse connected Jan. 20.

The lad and his begetter were released from a detention halfway successful Dilley, Texas, connected Saturday, aft a justice issued a ruling earlier successful the day.  

Liam Conejo Ramos and his begetter walk done airdrome information aft their merchandise from national custody connected Feb. 1, 2026. (Joaquin Castro)

Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, posted connected societal media Sunday that helium picked up the household Saturday nighttime and escorted them backmost to Minnesota the adjacent morning.

In a missive helium besides shared, the congressman wrote to the boy: "Don’t fto anyone archer you this isn’t your home. America became the astir powerful, prosperous federation connected world due to the fact that of immigrants not successful spite of them."

Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, poses with Liam Conejo Ramos, begetter Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias and Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., pursuing the family's merchandise from a detention halfway successful Texas. (Rep. Ilhan Omar)

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Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., celebrated their merchandise connected societal media with a photograph of her lasting adjacent to the household and Castro, writing, "Liam is location present and we are grateful to Joaquin Castro for traveling to Minneapolis with him and his dad. Welcome location Liam."