The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released a statement regarding a video showing the arrest of Juliana Milena Ojeda-Montoya by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Massachusetts. The video was widely shared online but did not include all details of the incident. DHS stated that Ojeda-Montoya, a citizen of Ecuador, was charged with stabbing a coworker with scissors and assaulting the same person with a trash can in August 2025.
On November 6, 2025, ICE agents stopped a vehicle to arrest Ojeda-Montoya. Her husband, Carlos Zapata Rivera, and their child were also in the car. Authorities said the child was sitting on Ojeda-Montoya’s lap in the front seat, which they described as unsafe. ICE officers asked Ojeda-Montoya to give the child to Zapata Rivera. She did not comply at first but agreed after her husband reported a medical issue.
Emergency medical staff responded but found no medical emergency. Zapata Rivera, also from Ecuador, declined medical help and showed no signs of illness. Both parents initially said they would prefer the child be placed in state care rather than follow ICE’s instructions…