Eight-year-old Haitian boy taken into federal custody alone after ICE check-in

An eight-year-old Haitian boy who lost his Temporary Protected Status earlier this year was taken into federal custody during an immigration check-in, according to local advocates and school officials.

The third grader, who attends Fay Elementary School in San Diego, was placed into government custody alone after attending an Immigration and Customs Enforcement appointment with his uncle on Thursday, according to his school district and an advocacy group.

The San Diego Unified School District said in a letter to the Department of Homeland Security that the eight-year-old had received a letter to meet with an ICE agent. His uncle, with whom he has been living since the child's father was deported more than a year ago, took him to meet the agent because he did not want to break the law.

Advocates and school officials said the boy had been living with his uncle and cousins after his father was deported to Mexico last year.

Guerline Jozef, the executive director of the nonprofit Haitian Bridge Alliance, said the father was not given the opportunity to put legal guardianship in place for the child.

Cody Petterson, a board trustee with the San Diego Unified School District, told ABC News the uncle was designated on school records as an authorized caregiver.

A spokesperson for ICE told ABC News in a statement that because the uncle could not establish legal guardianship, agents treated the eight-year-old as an unaccompanied child under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, a federal law that provides protections for unaccompanied immigrant children.

The agency did not allege any wrongdoing or abuse by the uncle, but invoked the law to mandate the child's transfer after designating him as an unaccompanied minor.

Out of an abundance of caution and to ensure the child's safety, ICE determined it was best to remove the child from the household and place him in the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement, the spokesperson said.

According to the school district and an advocacy group, the eight-year-old remains in ORR custody. It is unclear if he will be removed from the United States.

Jozef called the detention an excuse to remove the child and potentially put him in deportation proceedings. She said he was dressed very well and is very well cared for, adding that there is absolutely no reason to remove him from the care of his relatives without proper procedures, knowing that ICE already deported the father.

In the letter to DHS, San Diego Unified School District officials said they have witnessed situations in which children who should be attending school and participating in a supportive educational environment instead find themselves in government facilities.

The district added that children should not lose access to education simply because of circumstances unfolding around them. The case has now become a source of concern among local community members and immigration advocates.