10-Year-Old Venezuelan Boy Appears Alone in Houston Immigration Court — ICE Seeks Deportation to Ecuador, Country He Has Never Been To

Newsweek and CBS19 reported on approximately May 2, 2026 the case of Wilfredo Hoyos-Gomez, a 10-year-old Venezuelan boy who appeared alone — without legal representation — in an immigration court in Houston, Texas, while his mother remained in ICE detention. The case drew national attention after Wilfredo told Univision: 'I was scared because it was my first time in court.' DHS is seeking to deport Wilfredo to Ecuador — a country he has never visited, and where he has no family. His mother, Marife Gomez Bracho, had a valid work permit and had been attempting to comply with immigration requirements; she was detained separately, leaving Wilfredo without a parent or guardian present for the hearing. A former employer, Marife Mosquera, was serving as Wilfredo's legal guardian during proceedings. A U.S. congressman called on ICE to release his mother and halt the case, arguing Wilfredo should be treated as a child, not a criminal. The case illustrates a documented trend: immigration authorities have detained more than 6,200 children during Trump's second term (Marshall Project data), and more than 3,600 children have been deported from detention since the start of the administration. The Wilfredo case is especially notable because ICE is seeking to deport him to Ecuador — a third country unconnected to his background — while simultaneously detaining his mother separately, preventing family unity in both detention and any deportation proceedings. Children appearing alone in immigration court without counsel is neither new nor unusual in the U.S. system, which provides no right to appointed counsel in immigration proceedings regardless of age, but the case's public visibility — particularly Wilfredo's direct statement about his fear in court — added to the national debate over the Trump administration's treatment of children in immigration proceedings.