US Judge Orders Release Of 5-Year-Old Detained By ICE

WASHINGTON, Feb 1 (Bernama-dpa) -- A five-year-old boy who was taken into custody with his father by federal agents from the United States (US) Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is to be released, German Press Agency (dpa) reported Saturday, citing court documents.

A judge in the US state of Texas ordered that both be released by no later than Tuesday. The case of the boy, who was detained nearly two weeks ago during a raid in Minneapolis in the US state of Minnesota, sparked widespread outrage across the US.

In his ruling, the judge used unusually strong language, writing that "the case has its genesis in the ill-conceived and incompetently implemented government pursuit of daily deportation quotas, apparently even if it requires traumatising children."

"Ultimately, Petitioners may, because of the arcane United States immigration system, return to their home country, involuntarily or by self-deportation. But that result should occur through a more orderly and humane policy than currently in place," the judge wrote.

Critics described the incident as further evidence of how rigorously ICE agents are operating as part of the tightened migration policy under US President Donald Trump's administration.

The US Department of Homeland Security said at the time that the operation had targeted the boy's father, who is said to be from Ecuador and living illegally in the US. 

A lawyer familiar with the case said the family had applied for asylum at an official border crossing in December 2024 and that no deportation order was in place.

-- BERNAMA-dpa