Two Durham elementary school students and their parents were detained by federal immigration authorities during a scheduled appointment in Charlotte earlier this week, and deported to Honduras within 48 hours, according to family members and advocates.
The children, Genesis, 11, and Denis, 6, were taken into custody along with their parents on Monday after arriving for what relatives described as a routine administrative check-in tied to their asylum case.
“This family was lured into the check-in office under a false pretense of safety, and they were ripped away from their lives, from their school and deported in about 48 hours,” said Andreina Malki, defense manager with Siembra NC, at a press conference in Durham.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security told NC Newsline that the family had previously been ordered removed from the country.
“This illegal alien family unit was issued a final order of removal by a judge after they failed to show up for their immigration hearing,” the spokesperson said. “They were returned to their home country of Honduras together. They received full due process and had no pending asylum claims or immigration applications.”
The DHS spokesperson added that parents are given the option to be deported with their children or to have the children placed with a designated caregiver, a practice they said is consistent with prior administrations.
The spokesperson did not offer further details about the hearing the family is accused of having missed.
Relatives and advocates said the family had complied with all immigration requirements since arriving in the country in 2022.
“They have always shown up to their appointments on time for four years. They have never hidden anything at all, and they do not have a criminal record. This is very unjust,” the children’s aunt, Lillian, said in a released statement. “They were sent away with just the clothes on their back and need support rebuilding their life.”
On Monday morning, the family reported to an immigration office in Charlotte for an 11 a.m. appointment. Lillian, who drove the family to the appointment but remained outside, said she waited more than 90 minutes before receiving a call from an agent informing her the family was in custody.
Immigrants who sought asylum during border surge under increasing pressure
Siembra NC reported that it has recorded at least 20 detentions of asylum seekers in Charlotte in 2026, and attorneys the group works with have reported many more. Immigrants being detained and deported while reporting for routine check-ins have become more common under the Trump administration, which has vowed mass deportations.
The two students attended Burton Elementary Magnet School in Durham.
“I’m not a teacher without my students,” Brandon Daniel, a teacher at Burton Elementary Magnet School, said in a statement. Daniel said Genesis stood out as an especially helpful student who often assisted both classmates and teachers.
Durham Public Schools said it was aware of the reports.
“We will continue to provide the essential support services our Burton Elementary students, families, and staff need during this unsettling time. We are certainly troubled by this event and will continue to keep the family in our thoughts,” a DPS spokesperson told NC Newsline.
“None of this is normal, none of it is acceptable,” state Sen. Sophia Chitlik (D-Durham) said at the press conference on Thursday.
Hence then, the article about two durham elementary students detained by ice deported to honduras within 48 hours was published today ( ) and is available on NC news line ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Two Durham elementary students detained by ICE, deported to Honduras within 48 hours )
Also on site :