A rumor spread in March 2026 that Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained a Canadian citizen named Tania Warner and her 7-year-old daughter with autism, Ayla Lucas, despite them living in the U.S. legally on a work visa.
The story circulated on multiple platforms, including a Facebook post with more than 100,000 reactions, that claimed Tania, her husband and Ayla were stopped at a routine Border Patrol checkpoint on their way back from a baby shower before agents detained them at the Rio Grande detention facility in Texas.
Readers searched the Snopes website and emailed to verify the rumor that ICE agents detained Warner and her child. The story is real — although we've been unable to independently corroborate specific details of the incident and have been unable, as of this writing, to speak with Warner's husband, Edward Warner, who first relayed the incident to Canada's CTV News on March 17.
We did, however, find evidence in such places as family Facebook posts and a public fundraising campaign consistent with the details CTV News reported.
We reached out via email to Global Affairs Canada to inquire as to Tania Warner's case. A spokesperson said the department could not disclose specific information due to privacy concerns, but did say Canadian citizens "are being detained by ICE in the United States" and that Canadian officials were in contact with local authorities and making efforts to facilitate citizens' return to Canada "where appropriate."
We attempted to reach Edward Warner but have not, as of this writing, received any response. We also reached out to ICE and the Department of Homeland Security seeking details of their detainment and have not heard back. We will update this story if we do.
According to the CTV story (archived) that published on March 17, Edward Warner said he, Tania Warner and their daughter Ayla Lucas were driving home from a baby shower on March 14 and crossing through a Border Patrol checkpoint in Sarita, Texas, when ICE agents took Tania Warner and Ayla into custody, despite reportedly having the required documents. CTV Canada broadcast an image allegedly showing Tania Warner's documentation indicating she was a "lawful alien allowed to work," and her family reportedly told CTV she was in the process of getting her green card.
The agents reportedly claimed they needed to take Tania Warner's fingerprints and took her away, after which she did not return. About 10 or 20 minutes later, agents returned and said Edward Warner's step-daughter needed fingerprinting also. "She never came back out," he told CTV.
A GoFundMe set up by Edward Warner has raised nearly $10,000, as of this writing (archived). The featured images are consistent with those in the CTV News story, and the caption reads:
Heather Fleck, Tania Warner's mother, told CTV News that Ayla was "on the spectrum," and that "this is going to be devastating." Posts from Tania Warner's Facebook page also indicate she is the parent of a child with autism.
Although CTV News and others, including The Guardian, initially reported that the two were being held at the Rio Grande Valley Central Processing Center — where photographs emerged in 2018 of children in metal cages built in 2014 during former President Barack Obama's time in office — Edward Warner posted on March 20 that his wife and stepdaughter had been moved to the Dilley Immigration Processing Center.