DHS hits back at James Talarico after Democrat claims ICE 'kidnapped' 5-year-old boy deported with father

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin stated that Texas Democratic U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico did not present the full story regarding the deportation of a 5-year-old boy and his father. Mullin clarified that the deportation occurred at the father’s request and that ICE does not separate families, with parents having the option for their children to be removed with them or placed with a designated safe person. The father and son were deported together from the Dilley Immigration Processing Center.

• Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin addressed criticism from James Talarico concerning the deportation of a 5-year-old boy and his father.
• Talarico claimed ICE ‘kidnapped’ the boy, Liam Tadeo, and stated he should have been in kindergarten instead of a ‘prison camp’.
• Mullin stated that Talarico is not telling the full story and that the deportation was at the father’s request.
• Mullin emphasized that ICE does not separate families and that parents are given options regarding their children during deportation proceedings.
• The father and son were deported together from the Dilley Immigration Processing Center.
• The father, Victor Martinez Nieto, had previously been arrested in November 2025 and deported in February, later reentering the U.S. illegally.