ICE to start targeting unaccompanied minor illegals for deportation, with exception of trafficked or exploited children

WASHINGTON, DC - Reuters reports that according to an internal memo obtained by the outlet, the Trump administration is asking immigration agents to track down hundreds of thousands of children who were illegally trafficked into the United States under the Biden administration’s open border policies, Yahoo News reports. 

According to the ICE memo, there is planned a push to target migrant children who came into the United States as unaccompanied minors. Many of those children were subsequently trafficked into sex slavery and forced labor, some sources have said. According to a report from the Department of Homeland Security Office of the Inspector General, over 300,000 immigrant children under the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement have virtually disappeared, according to a media release from Rep. Mike Cloud (R-TX). 

The ICE memo laid out four enforcement operation phases, starting with a planning phase on Jan. 27, 2025. The specific start date of enforcement operations was not outlined. 

Reuters reported that over 600,000 children crossed the U.S.-Mexico border unaccompanied (without a parent or legal guardian) since 2019, citing government data. Tens of thousands were ordered deported over the same time frame, including 31,000 for missing court hearings, immigration court data shows. 

Reuters reached out to the Department of Homeland Security and ICE to discuss the memo, however, no response was received. 

In President Trump’s first term, the administration developed a “zero tolerance” policy, which led to some children being separated from their parents at the border, much as is done when a parent is arrested for any crime in the US. Pro-open borders zealots portray the separation program as inhumane, but it is nothing different than what is done if a parent is incarcerated for any crime.

In this case, the children were sent to children’s shelters run by the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), a government agency that falls under the Department of Health and Human Services, while parents were either held in detention or deported. 

The separation policy was halted by President Trump in 2018, however, according to the ACLU, up to 1,000 children may still be separated from their parents. 

The memo, titled “Unaccompanied Alien Children Joint Initiative Field Implementation,” will try to ensure that any children who are victims of human trafficking or other forms of exploitation are not included in the deportation program. 

The memo said that any children subject to the program would be given a notice to appear in immigration court or deported if deportation orders were already pending against them. 

ICE said it had collected data from several sources or unaccompanied minors and sorted them into three priority groups: “flight risk,” “public safety,” and “border security.” 

The memo instructed agents to focus on children considered “flight risks,” including those already ordered deported for missing court hearings or those released to sponsors who are not blood relatives. 

The law requires that illegals who have exhausted their legal options to stay can be removed, whether they are adults or not. However, the government has somewhat limited resources and prioritizes arresting adults with criminal records. 

A majority of the children in the country illegally are from Central America and Mexico. Some came to join their parents already in the US; however, many came with family members or smugglers. 

Border czar Tom Homan says that the 300,000 unaccompanied children that have gone missing did so during the Biden administration and agrees that they are at risk of trafficking and exploitation. ORR is not obligated to track children's whereabouts after they leave custody. Many are now adults or living with their parents. 

The ICE memo said local ICE field officers will decide “how to best locate, make contact, and serve immigration documents as appropriate for individual targets when conducting enforcement actions” involving unaccompanied children. 

Since being inaugurated on January 20, the number of illegals crossing into the US has dived exponentially, with Customs and Border Protection noting a 94% drop in border crossings. The president has also promised to tighten the vetting of sponsors. 

The new requirements require sponsors and adult household members to submit fingerprints for background checks, according to new guidance issued last week, Reuters said. 

In addition, the administration has expanded its access to ORR’s database of children and their sponsors. 

According to a source, Melissa Harper, a former ICE official who now heads ORR, told a staff meeting last week that the agency will use DNA tests to establish family relationships. It isn’t clear if DNA tests would be used solely in cases that raised a red flag or if they would do so regularly. 

The source claimed Harper told the meeting that ICE was pursuing 247,000 tips related to fraud, trafficking, and smuggling of unaccompanied minors and referring cases to the FBI for further investigation.