WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has issued a forceful response to a recent Minnesota Star Tribune article that questioned the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrests of criminal illegal aliens, including individuals convicted of child sexual abuse.

The Star Tribune article focused on concerns within Minnesota’s Hmong community and raised the possibility of cultural misunderstandings in some deportation cases. DHS, however, pushed back sharply, singling out the article’s treatment of one individual: Chia Neng Vue, a criminal alien ICE recently apprehended who has a documented history of violent and sexual crimes, including against children.

Vue, a native of Laos, was convicted in 1998 of criminal sexual conduct with a child under 13 and was also found guilty of gang-related activity. A federal immigration judge issued a final order of removal in 2003. Despite this, Vue remained in the U.S. and accumulated additional criminal charges over the next decade.

According to DHS, Vue’s record includes multiple arrests between 2009 and 2012, including for possession of assault weapons, first-degree criminal sexual conduct, domestic assault, violation of a domestic abuse no-contact order, and felony-level violent offenses.

ICE agents arrested Vue on June 7, 2025. DHS officials said he is now in custody awaiting deportation under the longstanding removal order.

“We have seen a lot of gross reporting, but this may take gold for despicable,” said DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. “There is no excuse for anyone to commit crimes against innocent children. These pedophiles are the types of sickos our brave ICE law enforcement officers are putting their lives on the line to arrest and remove from American communities.”

McLaughlin criticized the Star Tribune for, in her words, “glorifying” criminal illegal aliens, adding that the focus should remain on the victims and the law enforcement officers working to protect the public.

The Star Tribune has not yet responded publicly to DHS’s criticism.