Fei and his 6-year-old son, Yuanxin, a Chinese father and son from Astoria, Queens, were detained by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents after a scheduled immigration hearing at 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan, as reported by CBS News. Trouble began afterward, as the father and son were allegedly separated following the detention.
The family has been trying to obtain legal citizenship since this summer with community advocate Jennie Spector helping them. Talking about the separation between Fei and his son, Spector said, “The father does not know where his son is. He has not been told where his son is. They basically have kidnapped his son.”
Fei is currently being held at Orange County and Spector spoke with him. She said, “He was trying to put, I think, on a brave face, you know? But he was tearful during times … that we met because he doesn’t know where his son is and they’re not telling him.”
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However, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin presented a different version of the events in a statement. McLaughlin said that Fei and his son were “given a lawful order of removal as a family unit.” She then added that Fei allegedly “refused to board the plane and was acting so disruptive and aggressive that he endangered the child’s wellbeing. He even attempted to escape and abandon his son.”
She then added, in part, “ICE does not separate families. This is consistent with past administrations’ immigration enforcement. Parents are asked if they want to be removed with their children or ICE will place the children with a safe person the parent designates.”
It should be noted here that McLaughlin’s statement does not appear accurate, as there have been past instances of families being separated under ICE operations. Although ICE was deployed to deal with illegal immigrants, as the Trump administration claimed, agents have also often targeted legal citizens of the U.S. as well, sometimes making these decisions based on people’s race.
Last week, ICE arrested and separated a father and son after a routine check-in. Six-year-old Yuanxin had just enrolled in the first grade at an elementary school in Astoria. Now he’s in custody, alone. ICE won’t say where. This cruelty serves no one. It must end.
— Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@ZohranKMamdani) December 2, 2025
Fei’s current situation highlights the kind of mental and emotional turmoil that families are having to go through because of ICE operations. On Tuesday, Zohran Mamdani, Mayor-elect and Queens Assemblyman, talked about this family on social media, as he posted, “Last week, ICE arrested and separated a father and son after a routine check-in. Six-year-old Yuanxin had just enrolled in the first grade at an elementary school in Astoria. Now he’s in custody, alone. ICE won’t say where. This cruelty serves no one. It must end.”
Diana Moreno also spoke about the incident, saying, “It’s hitting our neighbors, it’s hitting our community really hard. To see their classmates disappear overnight is something that no parent wants to explain to their kid why this is happening.” It should be noted here that Moreno is looking to replace the Mayor-elect in Assembly District 36 as CBS News reported.
