ICE sent 3 U.S. citizen children, including boy with cancer, to Honduras with their deported moms

NBC News

2 days ago

Despite being American citizens, three children — a 4-year-old boy with Stage 4 kidney cancer, his 7-year-old sister and a 2-year-old girl — were swept up along with their families by immigration authorities in Louisiana and quickly sent to Honduras, according to a lawsuit filed on behalf of the families.
The suit alleges that despite the government's own directives, the parents 'were never given a choice as to whether their children should be deported with them and were prohibited from contacting their counsel or having meaningful contact with their families to arrange for the care of their children.' The mothers, named in the suit as Rosario and Julia, allege they wanted their children to remain in the U.S.
Instead, the families were 'illegally deported without even a semblance of due process,' the lawsuit states.
Romeo, as the now 5-year-old is identified in the lawsuit, was diagnosed with a 'rare and aggressive form of kidney cancer,' at age 2. He immediately began receiving ongoing 'critical, life-saving medical treatment' in the U.S., according to the lawsuit, which was filed by immigrant advocacy group National Immigration Project and three law firms.
'The failure to allow his mother to arrange for his care, in violation of ICE's own directive, and his unlawful deportation to Honduras interfered with his needed medical treatment,' the suit said.
The suit was filed on behalf of the two mothers and their children in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana on July 31. The plaintiffs' names in the lawsuit are pseudonyms to protect their identities and safety, attorneys said. The case against the federal government is in its early stages, and plaintiffs are seeking a jury trial and damages, and for their arrests and removals to be found unlawful and to be returned to the United States.
'This is emblematic of what happens when the administration is laser-focused on deportation, that when the end result is all that matters, you are going to end up with wrongful and unlawful deportations,' Stephanie Alvarez-Jones, an attorney with the National Immigration Project, told NBC News.
The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that U.S. children were not being 'deported' and denied that the parents were not given a choice regarding the care of their children before being sent to Honduras.
'Rather than separate their families, ICE asked the mothers if they wanted to be removed with their children or if they wanted ICE to place the children with someone safe the parent designates,' Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said. 'The parents in this instance made the determination to take their children with them back to Honduras.'
McLaughlin said that when there is 'an underlying health issue, ICE makes sure that treatment is available in the country to which the illegal alien is being removed. The implication that ICE would deny a child the medical care they need is flatly FALSE, and it is an insult to the men and women of federal law enforcement.'
NBC News has previously reported on U.S. citizen children being sent with their deported immigrant parents to other countries, including a 10-year-old girl recovering from a rare brain tumor sent to Mexico.
Rosario and Julia and their children were put on a plane to Honduras on April 25 after being detained at immigration check-in appointments where they were told to bring their U.S. citizen children and their passports, according to the lawsuit.
Both women had settled in the U.S. some years ago, the lawsuit states. Rosario came to the U.S. in 2013 as a 13-year-old unaccompanied minor. She gave birth to her first child, Ruby, in 2018 in New Orleans, and her second child, Romeo, in 2020.
In the lawsuit, Rosario claims she didn't know an immigration case against her was playing out while she was in the U.S. She said she only found out she had a removal order dating back 10 years after she was taken into ICE custody during a traffic stop in February.
The mother of two was given an ankle monitor and had check-ins with ICE both at her home and at their local office, the suit states.
On April 24, Rosario showed up at her immigration check-in with her attorney and children, along with their passports, per ICE's instructions. At the appointment, Rosario and her children were taken to a back room without their attorney and told they would be deported, according to the lawsuit.
ICE allegedly asked Rosario to sign a document without telling her what it was and Rosario refused. Agents allegedly dismissed her pleas to speak with her attorney about Romeo's condition.
Her attorney then learned that the family had been transferred to a facility in Alexandria, Louisiana, three hours away. The attorney filed a stay of removal for Rosario's family that included evidence of Romeo's Stage 4 cancer diagnosis.
The family was boarded on a plane the next day.
According to the lawsuit, Rosario 'explicitly opposed her U.S. citizen children's deportation and had never provided consent for such action. Indeed, given Romeo's cancer and specialized medical needs, Rosario wanted both of her U.S. citizen children to remain in the United States.'
Like Rosario, Julia was also denied access to an attorney when she and her children were detained by ICE and deported, the lawsuit states.
Julia first arrived at the U.S. border in 2019 fleeing Honduras, after her daughter Janelle was kidnapped there, according to the details in the lawsuit. After applying for asylum, they were forced to wait in Mexico at the time under Trump's 'Remain in Mexico' policy. They said in the lawsuit they were kidnapped in Mexico before they were able to return to the U.S. in August 2021.
Her daughter Jade was born in Louisiana in 2023.
Julia was told in February 2025 to begin bringing both of her daughters to her regular ICE check-ins, the lawsuit states.
On April 22, Julia, who was now pregnant, attended a check-in with her daughters as her partner waited outside. She said she was told her family was being transferred to Alexandria and that a judge would determine their fate in the U.S., according to the lawsuit. Her partner alleges he was told his family was transferred hours later and he was not given time to speak to Julia.
Later that night, Julia was told she would be deported along with her children.
Her attorney was allegedly told by ICE that Jacob, Julia's partner and also an immigrant, would be detained as well if he attempted to pick up his daughter Jade, who is a U.S. citizen.
While Jacob and the family attorney fought to temporarily stop the removal of Julia and her children, an ICE officer allegedly told Julia to write on a piece of paper that her daughter Jade would be going with her to Honduras.
'When Julia objected, the officer threatened Julia that Jade would be immediately sent to a foster home in the United States if Julia did not write a note stating that Jade would be deported to Honduras with her,' the lawsuit states, adding that Julia did as instructed under duress.
'At no point was Julia provided an opportunity to arrange for care of her U.S. citizen daughter Jade in the United States.'
DHS said in its statement to NBC News that it 'takes its responsibility to protect children seriously and will continue to work with federal law enforcement to ensure that children are safe and protected.' The agency said parents 'can take control of their departure' by self-deporting.
Julia and her children were sent to Honduras on April 25 on the same plane as Rosario's family.
Rosario said in a statement that in Honduras she lacks the resources to care for her children the way they need.
'Since returning, my daughter has gotten sick and struggled with anxiety, and I've been struggling with my own health issues too,' she said.
Julia said in a statement she thought she and her children were going to a regular appointment, but she was lied to. 'I never imagined they would send me and my children to Honduras,' she said.
'Returning to Honduras has meant leaving my husband behind, and that's been very hard,' she said. 'We were deprived of the opportunity to be and make decisions as a family.'