DHS Exposes Ilhan Omar’s False Claim About ICE Detaining a Child

In yet another brazen example of the Left weaponizing misinformation to push its open-borders agenda, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) falsely accused ICE of detaining a five-year-old child only to be promptly fact-checked and shut down by the Department of Homeland Security.

Omar took to social media to accuse federal agents of cruelty, posting: “ICE just detained a 5-year-old child. Don’t tell us this is about ‘the worst of the worst.’ That’s a lie. Absolutely vile.” But the truth tells a very different story one that the mainstream media and Democratic elites conveniently ignored.

According to DHS, the child in question wasn’t “detained” at all. He was abandoned by his illegal alien father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, during a targeted ICE operation in Minnesota on January 20. As agents moved in to arrest Arias—an Ecuadorian national who was released into the U.S. under Biden's broken border policies—he fled on foot, leaving his 5-year-old son behind in the car.

ICE officers didn’t detain the boy. They did the responsible thing: stayed with him to ensure his safety while other agents apprehended the fleeing suspect.

DHS made the situation crystal clear:

• “ICE did NOT target a child. The child was ABANDONED,” the official statement read.

• Agents offered the father the option to leave the country with his child, consistent with long-standing policy that existed under both Democrat and Republican administrations.

• Through the CBP One app, illegal aliens are even given free flights and $2,600 in support to depart voluntarily hardly the image of a heartless system the Left wants you to believe.

But facts didn’t stop the Democrats from fanning the flames of outrage:

• DNC Chairman Ken Martin absurdly claimed ICE used a child as “bait.”

• Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-CA) pushed the same narrative, alleging that ICE “forced him to knock on his own door.”

• Even Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI) jumped in, claiming, “Four CHILDREN… were detained by ICE” a claim completely debunked by DHS.

This wasn’t a case of misunderstanding. It was a deliberate attempt to smear ICE, undermine border enforcement, and stoke emotional outrage facts be damned.

And let’s not forget who created this mess. Arias was only in the country because the Biden administration released him into the U.S., continuing a disastrous policy of catch-and-release that has turned our southern border into a chaotic free-for-all. Under this administration, border encounters have shattered records, with over 2.4 million illegal crossings in 2023 alone.

Omar and her colleagues have made clear they care more about protecting illegal aliens than enforcing the law or ensuring the safety of innocent children like the one they’re now shamelessly exploiting for political gain.

DHS’s response wasn’t just a fact check it was a wake-up call. Americans deserve the truth about immigration enforcement, not dishonest narratives crafted to erode our sovereignty.

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