Date : April 10 .2025
Trump administration officials say they want to protect young migrants from trafficking and violence. Advocates worry they’re being targeted for deportation.
The Trump administration in January also sought to grant U.S. immigration officers access to a database maintained by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement, which oversees the placement of unaccompanied migrant children with sponsors. The database included information on hundreds of thousands of immigrant teens and children who crossed into the United States without their parents.
Some within the FBI have been resistant to participate in the welfare checks, according to five people familiar with the operation. They have expressed concern about diverting agent time away from criminal investigations and toward this effort, citing unclear goals of the task forces that have been organized by the Department of Homeland Security. Some are also worried about the risks of having armed agents make unannounced visits to interrogate immigrant families, a community already on edge about the Trump administration’s goals to deport millions of immigrants.
The agents, some of whom are on a 30-day assignment, are told to check the minors’ living conditions for drugs, sex, forced labor and signs of trafficking, as well as possible illegal immigration status in the country, according to information provided to task force members. The department has set up recommended quotas for the number of children each task force team should contact per day based on the city. In medium to large cities, the expected quota is as many as 18 per day.
Locating these migrants could be challenging given that children can move around frequently and change in appearance. Law enforcement authorities are using information acquired from the U.S. Border Patrol and U.S. Customs and Border Protection when the children initially arrived to locate them. Many were male children and teens, and many could be adults by now, according to the former federal official.
Tricia McLaughlin, DHS assistant secretary for public affairs, confirmed that the department is “leading efforts to conduct welfare checks on these children to ensure that they are safe and not being exploited.”
“Unlike the previous administration, President Trump and Secretary Noem take the responsibility to protect children seriously and will continue to work with federal law enforcement to reunite children with their families,” McLaughlin said.
Critics have remained skeptical of Trump’s efforts to protect children since his administration forcibly separated thousands of migrant children from their parents during his first term without a plan to reunite them, drawing international condemnation and leading to a court agreement barring the government from splitting up families who cross the border illegally.
The FBI also confirmed its role in a statement, saying that the agency is assisting Homeland Security Investigations and the Office of Refugee Resettlement in the nationwide effort, which it characterized as a push to protect children living in the country without their parents, making them “vulnerable to exploitation, trafficking and violence.”
Virginia attorney James Rivera said his office received a frantic call Monday morning from one of his clients, saying that five agents were outside her house. He immediately headed there, arriving within 11 minutes, and began filming his interaction with a man who said he was from HSI — which does federal criminal investigations for Immigration and Customs Enforcement — and conducting a welfare check. As the agent insisted on talking to Rivera’s client, he offered to set up an appointment in his office instead. The agent then left.
Hours later, Rivera posted the interaction on TikTok because of “the simple fact that something happened that I had never experienced being an attorney — that HSI/ICE was now doing welfare checks.” By Thursday, he said the video had about 17 million views.
“I just wanted to get the message out there for people to be aware,” he said.
White House border czar Tom Homan has previously said that the administration’s intention is to check on the children’s safety and not to arrest or deport their families.
“This is about finding the kids,” Homan said in January. “The data won’t be used for enforcement work.”
But Homan said then that he would not rule out the use of the data for enforcement purposes in the future, and immigration officers are under pressure to expand deportations.
Homan has long expressed concerns about smuggling of migrant children, recalling a migrant child who suffocated in an overheated tractor-trailer in 2003. But Homan also signed off on Trump’s 2018 “zero tolerance” policy that forcibly separated migrant children from their parents and favored reopening family detention centers.
The University of Nevada at Las Vegas Immigration Clinic posted a message on Facebook on Wednesday warning of “unscheduled home visits and or/phone calls by FBI agents to parents/guardians of immigrant children.”
Alissa Cooley Yonesawa, managing attorney of the clinic, said that she began to hear about the welfare checks earlier this week and questioned the government’s intentions.
“It has seemed like it’s just talking and checking in on kids, but I don’t think that’s where it will end,” she said. “A lot of people who they’ve visited have been in the United States for a few years at this point or aren’t even minors anymore, so are you really checking in on them because you care about their welfare as a child?”
In January, the Trump administration aimed to provide U.S. immigration officials with access to a database managed by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement. This office is responsible for placing unaccompanied migrant children with sponsors and maintains records on hundreds of thousands of minors who entered the United States without their parents.
According to five sources familiar with the operation, some FBI personnel have shown reluctance to engage in these welfare checks. They are concerned that this initiative could divert agents' attention from criminal investigations, as the objectives of the task forces organized by the Department of Homeland Security remain unclear. Additionally, there are apprehensions about the potential dangers of armed agents making unannounced visits to interview immigrant families, particularly in a community already anxious about the Trump administration's plans to deport millions.
Agents, some on temporary assignments lasting 30 days, are instructed to assess the living conditions of minors for indicators of drugs, sexual exploitation, forced labor, trafficking, and possible illegal immigration status. The department has established daily contact quotas for each task force team based on their location, with teams in medium to large cities expected to reach out to as many as 18 children daily.
Finding these minors can be difficult since children often move frequently and change their appearances. Law enforcement is utilizing information from U.S. Border Patrol and U.S. Customs and Border Protection collected during the children's initial arrival to track them down. Many of these minors were boys, and some may now be adults, according to a former federal official.
Tricia McLaughlin, the DHS assistant secretary for public affairs, stated that the department is “leading efforts to conduct welfare checks on these children to ensure that they are safe and not being exploited.” She emphasized that unlike the previous administration, President Trump and Secretary Noem take their responsibility to protect children seriously and will continue collaborating with federal law enforcement to reunite children with their families.
Skeptics remain doubtful about Trump’s commitment to child protection, especially after his administration separated thousands of migrant children from their parents during his first term without a clear plan for reunification. This practice drew international backlash and resulted in a court agreement prohibiting the government from separating families crossing the border illegally.
The FBI confirmed its involvement in a statement, noting that it is assisting Homeland Security Investigations and the Office of Refugee Resettlement in this nationwide initiative aimed at safeguarding children living without parental supervision, who are at risk of exploitation, trafficking, and violence.
Virginia attorney James Rivera reported receiving a distressing call from a client on Monday morning about five agents outside her home. He arrived within 11 minutes and began recording his encounter with an agent claiming to be from HSI, which conducts federal criminal investigations for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The agent was there for a welfare check but insisted on speaking with Rivera’s client directly. Rivera suggested arranging an appointment at his office instead, prompting the agent to leave.
Later that day, Rivera shared the encounter on TikTok due to its unusual nature—highlighting that HSI/ICE was conducting welfare checks. By Thursday, the video had garnered approximately 17 million views. “I just wanted to spread awareness,” he explained.
White House border czar Tom Homan previously stated that the administration's goal is to ensure the children's safety rather than to arrest or deport their families.
"This initiative is focused on locating the children," Homan stated in January. "The data will not be utilized for enforcement actions."
However, he did mention that he would not dismiss the possibility of using the data for enforcement in the future, especially as immigration officers face increasing pressure to broaden deportations.
Homan has consistently voiced concerns regarding the smuggling of migrant children, recalling a tragic incident in 2003 where a child suffocated in an overheated tractor-trailer. Nevertheless, he also endorsed Trump's 2018 "zero tolerance" policy, which led to the forced separation of migrant children from their parents, and supported the reopening of family detention centers.
On Wednesday, the Immigration Clinic at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas shared a warning on Facebook about "unscheduled home visits and/or phone calls from FBI agents to parents or guardians of immigrant children."
Alissa Cooley Yonesawa, the clinic's managing attorney, mentioned that she started receiving reports about these welfare checks earlier in the week and expressed skepticism about the government's motives.
"It appears to be just conversations and check-ins on the kids, but I don't believe that’s where it will stop," she remarked. "Many individuals they have visited have been in the U.S. for several years or are no longer minors, so is this really about checking on them out of concern for their welfare as children?"