Father Detained by ICE After Preschool Drop-Off in Boise
BOISE, Idaho — A man was taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents Friday morning shortly after dropping his child off at Mayra’s Spanish Daycare and Preschool in Boise, Idaho, according to the facility’s owner and a parent.
Mayra Ramirez, the owner of the daycare, said the man arrived early Friday and was immediately approached by several ICE agents in unmarked vehicles. The agents reportedly blocked his vehicle and took him into custody.
“They took a dad,” Nivea Castañeda, a parent at the daycare, told KTVB. Castañeda, who requested her last name not be used, said she received a notification from the daycare app alerting families to the ICE presence and a safety protocol being initiated.
Castañeda described rushing to the school after receiving the alert. “Of course my instinct is to get to my child,” she said. She added that the detained father was a regular presence at the daycare and actively involved in school activities, including chaperoning field trips. “He’s such an amazing dad… To learn it was him was awful. On a Friday when our kids are supposed to be learning, one little boy is going home to just a mom and no daddy.”
Ramirez and Castañeda both stated that the agents did not present a warrant for the man’s arrest. Instead, they reportedly showed him a photograph and asked if it was him. When the man and Ramirez requested documentation, they were allegedly told not to interfere with the agents.
The Boise Police Department confirmed they received a call from a third party at the scene and an officer responded, but stated they were not involved in the arrest itself.
A review of court records shows the man had a misdemeanor theft charge in 2024, serving several days in jail and completing community service. No active cases or warrants were found.
As of mid-afternoon Friday, February 6, ICE had not responded to requests for comment regarding the reason for the detention.
The incident prompted concern among parents and staff at the daycare, many of whom are Latino. While the agents did not enter the school building, and classes continued, the atmosphere was described as fearful. Castañeda expressed her dismay, stating, “To see that the family is being separated is cruel, unjust and not fair.”
Authorities have not released the name of the man detained, and the investigation into the circumstances remains ongoing.
