Vice President JD Vance has confirmed that a five-year-old boy was among those detained by federal immigration agents during a sweeping crackdown in Minneapolis, igniting widespread outrage in the city and across the United States.
Speaking on Thursday, Vance said he was initially shocked by reports that a child had been taken into custody. “As the father of a five-year-old,” he said, “I think to myself, ‘Oh my God, this is terrible. How did we arrest a five-year-old?’”
However, the vice president said he later changed his position after learning that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained the child when his father allegedly fled from immigration agents.
“Well, what are they supposed to do?” Vance asked. “Are they supposed to let a five-year-old child freeze to death?”
The remarks came amid escalating tensions in Minnesota, where protests have intensified following the fatal shooting of U.S. citizen Renee Good by federal agents on January 7. Thousands of federal officers have since been deployed to the Democratic-led state as the Trump administration pushes forward with its aggressive campaign to deport undocumented immigrants.
The latest controversy centers on the detention of five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and his father, who were taken into custody earlier this week. According to local officials, at least four children from the same Minneapolis school district have been detained by ICE this month.
Family lawyer Marc Prokosch told The Washington Post that Ramos and his father are currently being held in San Antonio, Texas, under the custody of the Department of Homeland Security. While they are not U.S. citizens, Prokosch said they have followed legal procedures in applying for asylum. Minneapolis is designated a sanctuary city, meaning local law enforcement does not cooperate with federal immigration enforcement.
Vance criticized such policies, arguing that they undermine ICE operations. “The lack of cooperation between state and local officials makes it harder for us to do our job and turns up the temperature,” he said.
Meanwhile, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the arrest of three activists accused of disrupting a church service in St. Paul during a protest against ICE. The suspects — lawyer and social activist Nekima Levy Armstrong, Chauntyll Louisa Allen and William Kelly — were arrested in connection with a demonstration at Cities Church, where protesters chanted “ICE out!” and accused a pastor of collaborating with immigration authorities.
Bondi said Armstrong “allegedly played a key role in organizing the coordinated attack on Cities Church,” announcing the arrests in a post on X.
As anger grows over ICE’s use of pepper spray, tear gas and other forceful tactics in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Vance defended federal agents and urged demonstrators to remain peaceful.
“Yes, protest. Protest me. Protest our immigration policy,” he said, flanked by ICE officers and vehicles. “But do it peacefully. If you assault a law enforcement officer, the Trump administration and the Department of Justice are going to prosecute you.”
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey echoed the call for peaceful protests but condemned the scale of the federal presence in the city. He described the deployment of about 3,000 federal agents as feeling like an “occupation” and accused them of “terrorizing people,” according to the Minnesota Star Tribune.
The state of Minnesota has since sought a temporary restraining order to halt the ICE operations. A federal judge is expected to hear the application on Monday.
Meanwhile, the officer who fatally shot Renee Good, identified as Jonathan Ross, has neither been suspended nor charged. President Donald Trump and his administration have defended the shooting, maintaining that it was an act of self-defense.
The immigration sweeps are also unfolding against the backdrop of a highly politicized fraud investigation in Minnesota, further deepening divisions and tensions in the state.
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