Family of Karoline Leavitt releases startling statement as relative held by ICE

The family of White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt’s nephew’s mother has spoken out after her detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Earlier this week, Bruna Ferreira, who came to the U.S. from Brazil as a child in 1998 on a tourist visa that later expired, was picked up by ICE. She is currently being held at the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center.

According to officials, she faces removal proceedings and could be deported back to Brazil. DHS stated that she previously had an arrest for battery and that, under current policy, anyone unlawfully in the country is subject to deportation.

A White House official confirmed the family connection to WBUR but emphasized that Leavitt had “no involvement whatsoever in this matter.”

Ferreira was previously in a relationship with Michael Leavitt, the brother of the White House Press Secretary. The two share an 11-year-old son, Michael Leavitt Jr., but are believed to have been separated for over a decade.

Michael, who is said to taken care of their son since birth, stressed that his “only concern has always been the safety, wellbeing, and privacy” of his son.