Thousands of migrant children are unaccounted for in the United States, according to a report from the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general.
“This alert informs you of an urgent issue we discovered during an ongoing audit and the actions [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] has taken to address the issues,” the inspector general wrote. “Specifically, we found ICE cannot always monitor the location and status of unaccompanied migrant children who are released from DHS and HHS custody.”
The report details that ICE “could not monitor the location and status of all unaccompanied migrant children (UCs) or initiate removal proceedings as needed.”
Upon assessing ICE’s handling of UCs, the inspector general found that the agency “transferred more than 448,000 UCs to HHS from fiscal years 2019 to 2023. However, ICE was not able to account for the location of all UCs who were released by HHS and did not appear as scheduled in immigration court.”
The agency is required to serve a “notice to appear” to children. “ICE reported more than 32,000 UCs failed to appear for their immigration court hearings from FYs 2019 to 2023.”
ICE failed to account for 291,000 children who were handed over to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the report notes.
“Based on our audit work and according to ICE officials, UCs who do not appear for court are considered at higher risk for trafficking, exploitation, or forced labor,” the inspector general wrote. “Although we identified more than 32,000 UCs who did not appear for their immigration court dates, that number may have been much larger had ICE issued NTAs to the more than 291,000 UCs who were not placed into removal proceedings.”
ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officers interviewed by the inspector general “expressed concern” that they were unable to intervene in situations involving a child in “unsafe conditions.”
“One ICE officer expressed concern with not being able to take action in a case involving a UC whose sponsor claimed the UC was in an inappropriate relationship with her husband,” the report says.
Of the ICE personnel across 10 field offices that the inspect general met with, officers at “only one location stated they attempted to locate UCs who did not appear in immigration court.”
“When ICE does not share information with HHS regarding UCs who did not appear for hearings, HHS personnel are unable to determine if UCs need wellness checks or postrelease services for individuals at an increased risk of being trafficked. Without an ability to monitor the location and status of UCs, ICE has no assurance UCs are safe from trafficking, exploitation, or forced labor,” the report concludes.
Some migrant children have been placed with sponsors who are linked with the gang MS-13.
Records from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), obtained through whistleblower disclosures from former staff members of the Unaccompanied Children (UC) program, revealed that HHS knowingly placed two migrant children in an MS-13-associated household.
“HHS, Congress and the American people must face the facts: HHS’ UC program has glaring defects that are harming innocent children,” Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) said in a statement. He explained the records “are the kind the government fights tooth and nail to withhold from the public, and they ought to send a chill up every person’s spine.”