The mother of a 5-year-old boy who was taken with his father in Minnesota last week described her anguish as she watched from a window as immigration agents whisked her child and partner away.
Liam Conejo Ramos and his father, Adrián Alexander Conejo Arias, were returning from Liam’s preschool on Jan. 20 when they were confronted by immigration agents, according to Zena Stenvik, the superintendent of Columbia Heights Public Schools. A school board member who witnessed the father’s arrest said last week that she heard an adult inside the home pleading with agents to leave the child.
Erika Ramos, Liam’s mother, told Telemundo in Spanish that she “witnessed the scene from the window and couldn’t do anything. Adrián begged me repeatedly not to go outside because he was afraid they would arrest me too.”
Ramos said the immigration officers noticed her, took Liam out of their car and brought him to the front door so she would open it.
“They knocked and knocked, and my son Liam kept saying, ‘Mommy, open the door.’ I was terrified,” she said while sobbing.
She said she didn’t open the door out of fear she would be arrested and her other child would be left alone.
“When I didn’t open the door, they took Liam to the ICE van. It all seemed like an attempt to free me, to provoke me, as if they wanted me to run out desperately for my son so they could arrest me as well,” she told Telemundo.
“They used my boy as bait. Even so, my husband desperately insisted that I not go out, especially because we have another child and I am pregnant,” she said. “His only intention was to protect us, like any responsible husband and father.”
The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement Friday that the child’s father fled from agents who approached his car, leaving Liam.
“For the child’s safety, one of our ICE officers remained with the child while the other officers apprehended Conejo Arias,” DHS said.
Ramos denied DHS’ allegations, saying, “I repeat, at no point did my husband do what they’re saying, abandon my son. No, at no point did he do that.”
The agency said Liam’s mother refused officers’ attempts to have her take custody of the boy. His father agreed to keep Liam in his care, DHS said.
Both Liam and his father were moved from Minnesota to Texas, and the restraining order says they are in the Dilley Immigration Processing Center.
Ramos said she is worried about her son’s health. She said she had spoken with her husband and he told her Liam has been sick.
“He says he has a fever, he has a stomachache, he has diarrhea,” she said, her voice breaking.
She also said her husband told her he and Liam weren’t being given medicine.
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On Thursday, the Trump administration said a pediatrician has examined Liam “and found no medical concerns.”
“It is standard policy to provide medical care from the moment an alien enters ICE custody,” Dr. Sean Conley, the acting director of the Office of Health Security, DHS’ public health authority, said in a statement shared on X by DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin.
“This includes medical, dental, and mental health intake screening within 12 hours of arriving at each detention facility, a full health assessment within 14 days of entering ICE custody or arrival at a facility, and access to necessary medical appointments and 24-hour emergency care,” Conley said in the statement.
Ramos said neither she nor her husband have a criminal record and that the two entered the country legally under the Biden administration’s CBP One program, which was later undone by the Trump administration.
Ramos said she would ask the authorities “to give them back to me,” referring to her husband and son.
“Please release them,” she said.
On Tuesday, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order blocking the Trump administration from removing Liam from the country.
Democratic Rep. Joaquin Castro of Texas said he visited Liam and his father at the detention center on Wednesday.
“I demanded his release and told him how much his family, his school, and our country loves him and is praying for him,” he said on social media.
Tuesday’s order prevents them from being removed or transferred outside the District of Western Texas pending a further directive from the court.
The case has drawn scrutiny from critics who have accused Immigration and Customs Enforcement of using children as “bait.”
The agency has defended its actions.
“Our officers made multiple attempts to get the alleged mother who was inside the house to take custody of her child,” the agency said. “Officers even assured her she would NOT be taken her into custody. The alleged mother refused to accept custody of the child.”
