ICE seizes 11-year-old to force dad’s deportation — despite torture risk
President Donald Trump is trying to deport a Russian man who passed the U.S. screening process for asylum. The U.S. government has also taken away his son.
Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, posted an excerpt of a New York Times report revealing that the man fled to the United States after his wife was locked up for her political views.
Pavel Snegir and his 11-year-old son, Aleksandr, already passed the initial screening and confirmed that if Snegir is sent back to Russia, he will likely be tortured.
"But the Trump admin is still trying to deport him anyway, and has taken away his son until he agrees to be deported," wrote Reichlin-Melnick.
Snegir and his son had been in ICE custody, but in May he was taken to an airport in San Diego. He was told he could take his son to the court hearing in New York. But once they were at the airport, Snegir was scared to board the plane, convinced he was about to be deported back to Russia.
"Later that day, after the flight had left, an ICE official told him he would be separated from his son because he refused to be deported," the report said.
Snegir said he refused to give the government his child. ICE followed with threats he'd be thrown "to the ground, handcuffed and taken away if he did not relent."
He didn't move and "everything she promised happened," Snegir recalled.
His son witnessed the whole ordeal. He previously watched his mother be taken by the Russian government, too.
Now, ICE is telling Snegir that he can self-deport back to Russia, or they'll deport him anyway, without his son. They claimed he may never see his son again.
Snegir relented, but the following day, he was approved under the protection screening, which means ICE can deport him, but he can't be sent to Russia.
This week, the administration also published its guidance on birthright citizenship, which will allow ICE to enter maternity wards and demand papers from families after their infants are born. If the parents can't prove their citizenship, the government can take the newborn away from its parents and deport it to whatever country it wants, one legal analyst described.
Trump branded playing cards are displayed for sale at the recently opened Trump merchandise store at Trump Turnberry golf course, on July 28, 2025, in Turnberry, Scotland, Britain. Christopher Furlong/Pool via REUTERS