USA24 January, 20263 min read
ICE Flies 2-Year-Old to Texas Despite Judge's Order
This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets. Our editorials offer in-depth analysis curated by the NewsCord team.
ICE arrested a Minnesota man and his 2-year-old daughter and flew them to Texas. The child’s transfer occurred despite a court order requiring her immediate release.
5 outlets told this the same way.
Outlets did split on White House Officials Question How Long Katie Zacharia Will Stay Press Secretary After First Briefing →
Arrest and transfer to Texas
A 2-year-old girl and her father, identified as Ecuadorian national Elvis Joel Tipan Echeverria, were arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in south Minneapolis on Jan. 22.
“A 2-year-old girl and her father, Ecuadorian national Elvis Joel Tipan Echeverria, were arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in south Minneapolis around 1 p.m. Thursday and were transported to Texas within hours, court filings show. The transfer occurred despite a judge’s order to release the child, according to the filings.”
They were transported to Texas within hours, court filings and reporting say.
Court filings cited by local reporting state the transfer occurred despite a judge’s order to release the child.
National and international outlets report the pair were stopped while returning from errands and flown to a Texas detention center hours after their detention.
Disputed arrest accounts
Accounts differ on how the arrest occurred. Press TV reports attorneys' claims that ICE agents entered the family's backyard and driveway without a warrant as the father and toddler arrived home and that one agent smashed a car window while the toddler was inside.
Press TV also reports attorneys saying agents would not let the father bring the child to the mother inside and that the child and father were placed into an ICE vehicle that lacked a car seat. People presents a briefer scene, saying the pair were stopped while driving home from a grocery store, while kstp focuses on an arrest and transfer noted in court filings without detailed allegations about forced entry or a broken window.
Emergency order and transfer
Legal action unfolded quickly. Lawyers filed an emergency petition and a federal judge issued an order at about 8:10 p.m. The order barred the government from transferring them out of state and directed ICE to release the girl into temporary custody authorized by her mother.
“Lawyers filed an emergency petition; a federal judge issued an order at about 8:10 p.m. barring the government from transferring them out of state and then directed ICE to release the girl into temporary custody authorized by her mother, citing the ‘risk of irreparable harm’ and noting the child had no criminal history. Despite the order, attorneys say ICE placed the pair on a flight to Texas around 8:30 p.m.; officials later returned them to Minnesota and released the girl to her mother. The father remains detained in the state.”
The judge cited the risk of irreparable harm and noted the child had no criminal history. Despite that order, Press TV reports attorneys say ICE placed the pair on a flight to Texas around 8:30 p.m.
KSTP's summary of court filings likewise states the transfer occurred despite the judge's order. People likewise reports that the father and daughter were detained and flown to Texas hours later, matching the sequence reported elsewhere.
Minnesota detention controversy
After the reported flight and subsequent return, Press TV reports officials later returned them to Minnesota and released the girl to her mother while the father remained detained in the state. Attorneys called the actions 'shocking and depraved' in Press TV's coverage. The case has intensified local controversy over ICE detaining children in Minnesota, with Press TV noting recent cases involving other young children and reporting local protests and Mayor Jacob Frey urging ICE to leave Minneapolis.
People cites a Minneapolis City Council member's Instagram post as a source for the timeline. Local reporting (kstp) confirms the arrests and the judge's order referenced in court filings but provides fewer of the broader protest and political-reaction details.
Tone and sourcing comparison
Local outlet KSTP presents a concise, legal-document-focused account that emphasizes court filings and the judge's order. People frames the episode through named individuals and a human-interest lens, noting the grocery trip and citing a local council member's Instagram.
“A 2-year-old girl and her father, Ecuadorian national Elvis Joel Tipan Echeverria, were arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in south Minneapolis around 1 p.m. Thursday and were transported to Texas within hours, court filings show. The transfer occurred despite a judge’s order to release the child, according to the filings.”
Press TV adopts a more accusatory tone, reporting attorneys' allegations of force, entry into property and a smashed window, quoting attorney condemnation while situating the incident amid broader protests over ICE's treatment of children. All three sources corroborate the arrest, transfer and judge's order but diverge on the level of alleged misconduct described and on the political or emotional framing.