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ICE builds massive DNA database from immigrants, including children

Aug 11, 2026·Location: Dilley, TX

ICE builds massive DNA database from immigrants, including children

ICE added up to roughly 920,000 DNA profiles into the FBI's criminal database CODIS in 2025, according to Georgetown Law's Center on Privacy and Technology and reporting by WIRED. Most people whose DNA was collected have no criminal record. Among those affected are children held at the family detention center in Dilley, Texas, including 492 children under age 14 whose DNA was sent to the FBI, some as young as four or five years old. Members of Congress, including Representatives Joaquin Castro, Greg Stanton, and Nanette Barragán, said the families at Dilley 'have not been convicted of a crime' and 'do not belong in a database meant for violent criminals, especially children.'

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