June 5, 2025Washington, DC, United StatesChild Exploitation, Human Smuggling/Trafficking

DHS initiative uncovers widespread abuse, exploitation of unaccompanied kids placed with previously improperly vetted sponsors

WASHINGTON — In the past four years, the United States saw a record surge in the number of unaccompanied alien children crossing its southern border. In many cases, these vulnerable children were released to sponsors in the United States without proper vetting — some of the sponsors had paid smugglers to bring the children into the country or fraudulently claimed familial relationships. As a result, these children were subjected to physical abuse and sexual and labor exploitation.

In February 2025, the Department of Homeland Security and its federal and state partners launched a national child welfare initiative to locate and verify these at-risk kids’ safety.

“Children’s safety and security is nonnegotiable,” said ICE spokesperson Laszlo Baksay. “The previous administration’s failure to implement meaningful safeguards has allowed vulnerable kids to fall into the hands of criminals. Our special agents are working tirelessly to locate these alien children, ensure their protection, and hold accountable those who have abused the system.”

Since the effort’s launch, agents have uncovered alarming instances of abuse and exploitation. Special agents discovered sponsors in possession of child sexual abuse material, those who had forced minors into labor, and those who subjected them to living conditions that constituted neglect. They also discovered numerous sponsors who committed serious crimes, including offenses of hit-and-run, aggravated assault, larceny, counterfeiting, drug trafficking, prostitution and even attempted murder.

In some of the most disturbing cases, girls were pregnant with children fathered by their alleged sponsors — which highlights the grave failures of previous vetting procedures and the dangerous consequences of placing minors in unsafe environments.

“Our agents are doing what should’ve been done all along: protecting children, not pushing them into the shadows,” said Baksay. “This is the responsibility of any government, Republican or Democrat, but it was the Trump administration that insisted on rigorous sponsor screening and biometric verification. Those guardrails were dismantled, and we’re now seeing the consequences.”

To ensure unaccompanied alien children’s well-being, ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations special agents have been conducting welfare checks. These visits are designed to assess whether children are receiving appropriate care, attending school, complying with immigration proceedings, and — most critically — not being trafficked, exploited or abused.

These welfare checks are not primarily immigration enforcement focused, but if ICE agents or officers encounter individuals who are in the United States illegally, they take them into custody and process them for removal in accordance with federal immigration law. Likewise, unaccompanied children in the U.S. illegally are transferred to the Office of Refugee Resettlement’s custody.

“Media outlets should focus less on political spin and more on the facts,” Baksay concluded. “This is about the lives of children, and it’s time we treat it with the seriousness its demands.”

DHS takes its responsibility to protect children seriously. Parents who are here illegally can take control of their departure. Through the CBP Home App, the Trump administration is giving parents illegally in the country a chance to take full control of their departure and self-deport with the potential ability to return the legal, right way and come back to live the American dream. It is free and available for all mobile devices.

Under the Homeland Security Act of 2002 and the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is required to assume custody of and provide care for all unaccompanied alien children from the time they are transferred to HHS from the Department of Homeland Security or other federal entity until they are released to a vetted sponsor. To learn more, visit https://acf.gov/orr.

Updated: 06/05/2025