Six members of Congress are demanding answers after an 8-year-old Haitian boy was taken into federal custody at a scheduled immigration check-in in San Diego. The lawmakers want to know where the child is, why he was separated from his uncle, and how he will be reunited with family.
The boy, a third grader at Fay Elementary School in the City Heights neighborhood, had gone to the check-in with his uncle, who had been caring for him since his father was deported in March 2025. Instead of going home with his uncle, the boy was placed in federal custody.
What happened at the check-in
Most reports, including a Nov. 10 letter from California lawmakers, place the check-in on Thursday, Nov. 5, at the Edward J. Schwartz federal building at 880 Front Street in downtown San Diego. Some early reports said Nov. 4. The exact day is not settled in the public record, but the sequence is clear.
The boy arrived with his adult uncle for a scheduled appearance. Federal officers from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, known as ICE, took the boy into custody and separated him from his uncle. Video recorded by a volunteer court observer shows ICE officers leading the boy away.
The government account
The Department of Homeland Security says the uncle could not prove he was the boy’s legal guardian. Because of that, the department says, the boy counts as an unaccompanied minor under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, a 2008 anti-trafficking law.
ICE placed him with the Office of Refugee Resettlement, the agency within Health and Human Services that cares for migrant children who arrive without a parent or guardian. The department disputes descriptions of the placement as detention, and says it acted out of an abundance of caution and to ensure the child’s safety.
The department has also alleged that the child entered the United States illegally with a man claiming to be his father, who was later removed to Mexico. That claim has not been independently confirmed in public reporting, and it should not be treated as established fact.
The lawmakers account
On Nov. 10, Reps. Juan Vargas, Sara Jacobs, Mike Levin and Scott Peters, along with Sens. Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff, all of California, sent a joint letter to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. demanding answers.
The lawmakers wrote that an ICE officer reportedly invoked the trafficking law while taking the boy into custody, apparently placing him in restraints and separating him from the person who brought him for his hearing. They wrote that video footage appears to show the use of restraints on a child who seemed to pose no threat to those around him.
The lawmakers asked for confirmation of the child’s whereabouts, whether his family is aware of his location, and an emergency reunification plan. They asked for an update by Dec. 1, 2026. As of Nov. 10, the family was working to resolve the guardianship issue, and the boy remained in Office of Refugee Resettlement custody.
Sources
- Rep. Juan Vargas: Reps. Vargas, Jacobs, Levin, Peters and Senators Padilla and Schiff Demand Answers After 8-Year-Old is Detained at Immigration Check-In
- Immigration Analytics: ICE detains San Diego third-grader at check-in
- The Mary Sue: Why did ICE take into custody an 8-year-old?