Overview
- Bruna Caroline Ferreira, a Brazilian-born mother of Leavitt’s 11-year-old nephew, was arrested near Boston on Nov. 12 and transferred to an ICE facility in South Louisiana, where she remains in deportation proceedings.
- DHS says Ferreira is a “criminal, illegal alien” who overstayed a tourist visa that lapsed in 1999 and had a prior arrest for assault, characterizing her as subject to removal.
- Her attorney disputes DHS’s account, asserting she has no criminal record, was brought to the U.S. as a child, previously held DACA protection, and is pursuing legal residency or citizenship.
- Family members say Ferreira and the child’s father share custody and report the boy has not spoken with his mother since the arrest, with a GoFundMe raising more than $15,000 for legal fees.
- The White House confirmed the family connection through a staff acknowledgment, Leavitt has not commented publicly, and media frame the case within the administration’s broadened ICE operations.