Rep. Joaquin Castro claims the child, his sister and parents were deported "with only the money that they had in their commissary—a total of $190"
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NEED TO KNOW
- A 2-month-old baby reportedly suffering from bronchitis was deported to Mexico, along with his family, U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro said on Tuesday, Feb. 17
- The boy was hospitalized on Monday; a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told PEOPLE that a boy was taken to a local Texas hospital “for a precautionary evaluation after he showed symptoms of a respiratory infection”
- The boy was detained at the immigration detention center in Dilley, Texas, the same one where 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos was held before he and his father were released on Feb. 1
A 2-month-old baby reportedly suffering from bronchitis was deported to Mexico after three weeks at the immigration detention center in Dilley, Texas, Rep. Joaquin Castro said in a post on X Tuesday, Feb. 17.
According to Castro, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deported the child, his 16-month-old sister, his mother and his father “with only the money that they had in their commissary—a total of $190.” Castro, a Democrat who represents parts of San Antonio, cited the family’s attorney. He identified the infant as Juan Nicolás.
Juan Nicolás went to the hospital on Monday, Feb. 16, after falling ill with bronchitis, the Frio County Sheriff’s Office told KSAT. PEOPLE reached out to the Frio County Sheriff’s Office for comment.
Castro said on X Juan Nicolás was discharged from the hospital Monday night, despite being "unresponsive" at times during the day. In that same update, Castro said that early Tuesday, Juan Nicolás' mother was before an immigration judge, who told her "she will be deported, but was not told when or where."
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In a Monday Instagram video, Castro said that Juan Nicolás had been at Dilley for about three to three and a half weeks. He said at one point, there was no doctor for Juan Nicolás to see in the early morning hours, and that the child’s “life is in danger.”
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told PEOPLE that a child was taken to a local hospital in Pearsall, Texas, “for a precautionary evaluation after he showed symptoms of a respiratory infection” on Feb. 16, adding that the child’s mother “was able to monitor his condition throughout the hospital visit.”
“Hospital staff found the child’s condition stable, and he remained alert and responsive during the evaluation,” the DHS statement read. “The hospital did not admit him, and he has since returned to Dilley where medical personnel continue to monitor his health. He is in stable condition alert and responsive and continues to receive proper care.”
DHS said it has “a longstanding practice to provide comprehensive medical care from the moment an alien enters ICE custody,” which includes “medical, dental, and mental health services as available, and access to medical appointments and 24-hour emergency care.”
PEOPLE asked DHS for further clarification on whether Juan Nicolás' family had been deported as Castro said.
Univision reporter Lidia Terrazas also reported that the child and his family were deported to Mexico. In a late Tuesday evening update, Terrazas reported that Juan Nicolás' family used the commissary money to book a hotel, and they planned to get Juan Nicolás medical attention as soon as they could.
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The facility in Dilley is the same one where Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias and his 5-year-old son, Liam Conejo Ramos, were detained. They were taken into custody in Minnesota in January and released on Feb. 1.
It was built in 2014 under the Obama administration, according to The New York Times. The Biden administration stopped using it in 2021 and closed it in 2024, but the Trump administration reopened it in 2025. According to RAICES, a nonprofit that provides legal services to immigrants and refugees in the U.S., there were about 1,400 people at Dilley as of mid-January, including about 500 children, per the Times.
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