5-year-old boy detained with father after Austin traffic stop, held at Dilley facility
Liam Tadeo, a 5-year-old just days from starting kindergarten, was detained by ICE agents alongside his father, Victor Martinez Nieto, after federal agents stopped their vehicle in Austin, Texas, while the family was on their way to a soccer game. Both were booked into the CoreCivic-run South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, where DHS said they would remain together pending Martinez Nieto's removal. Attorney Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch said Martinez Nieto begged ICE to release Liam to his mother, as was done for the boy's 3-year-old cousin and uncle detained at the same stop, but ICE refused. Liam's mother said she was not able to say goodbye to her son, that his bedroom remains untouched, and that the family was devastated and wanted them reunited. His aunt described him in a GoFundMe post as 'a beautiful, intelligent, and big-hearted little boy.' DHS said Martinez Nieto, a Mexican national, had previously accepted voluntary departure in February before reentering the U.S. without authorization. The migrant rights organization Fuerza Migrante called on Mexican authorities to intervene and for alternatives to detention for the child, while U.S. Rep. Greg Casar called for Liam's immediate release and closure of the Dilley facility, and U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro said ICE denied his request to visit the family. Immigration attorney Renata Castro said Liam will likely remain at Dilley for weeks with an uncertain future.





















