As protesters demonstrated across Los Angeles in response to raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in June 2025, a rumor circulated online about an earlier raid in which Texas authorities, along with the FBI and ICE, allegedly detained several minors.
Users across multiple platforms (archived, archived, archived) claimed of the more than 40 people taken into custody during an ICE raid on a Texas house in early April 2025, nine were minors.
Many posts pointed to an article (archived) in The New Republic that claimed ICE "invaded [a] child's birthday party."
(The New Republic)
Did the raid actually happen?
The raid did, in fact, take place. According to an April 2, 2025, news release (archived) from the Texas Department of Public Safety, "more than 40 individuals, including minors, were taken into custody at or near the residence, and narcotics were seized." It's unclear how many arrests took place at the location in question and how many happened "near the residence," as the news release worded it.
The release said that after more than a year of investigation, Texas authorities raided the house, alleging it was a suspected gathering of members from the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua. In the two-plus months since the raid, as of this writing, authorities have not publicly released any evidence supporting their claims.
We reached out to the Texas DPS seeking comment and further details, and will update this story if we receive a response.
The full release was as follows:
AUSTIN — For more than a year, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the San Antonio Police Department (SAPD), the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) and several other federal, state and local partners, have been investigating members and associates believed to be part of the Venezuelan transnational gang, Tren de Aragua (TdA).
In recent days, the FBI developed intelligence regarding a possible gathering of suspected TdA members or TdA associates in Hays Co.
Early Tuesday morning [April 1, 2025], the Hays Co. Sheriff's Office and DPS, working with the FBI, ICE, Homeland Security Investigations and Enforcement Removal Operations, established sufficient cause to obtain a search warrant for a residence in Hays Co., which was executed by DPS' Special Response Team. As a result of this operation, more than 40 individuals, including minors, were taken into custody at or near the residence, and narcotics were seized.
State and federal prosecutors will evaluate potential charges based on evidence obtained during the search warrant and subsequent investigation.
This case is currently under investigation. More details will be released as they become available.
(Texas DPS)
The Texas Tribune published the search warrant used for the raid, which details the Austin property where the raid took place. Photos of the address match the description in the search warrant, which described the house as "a white rock and concrete stucco siding residence with dark in color trim and a dark in color shingle roof. There is a stairway leading up to the front door. The location is a two story residence with a side building/living area with a large in ground pool in the back yard."
An image of the property from real estate site compass.com shows the address of the property matches the physical description in the search warrant.
(compass.com)
Was the raid during a birthday party?
According to the Tribune story (archived), published on June 4, 2025, several people present at the raid said in interviews that relatives and friends had rented the house to celebrate a pair of birthdays when authorities conducted the raid at approximately 5 a.m. April 1. The story read:
Suddenly, at about 5 a.m. the next morning, the group heard explosions from flashbangs, followed by shouts from law enforcement yelling commands to get out of the house, according to interviews with two attendees.
"We all started shouting that there were babies — 'Babies, there's babies,'" recounted a 30-year-old Venezuelan man, who said he was at the house to celebrate the birthdays of his son, who turned 5, and his best friend, who turned 28.
Law enforcement did take minors into custody, although authorities did not publicly confirm how many of the "more than 40" people detained were children. The Tribune obtained public information documents and identified 35 of people taken into custody, reporting that nine of them were minors. Snopes has not independently reviewed this documentation.
The Tribune's report claimed that "ICE has refused to release the names of who was detained and where they are currently," and that "all 35 were arrested on suspicion of illegally entering the country, a federal violation, and the government intends to deport them, DPS reports show."