On Saturday (June 23), a 15-year-old boy left Casa Padre, a care facility for migrant children located in Brownsville, Texas. After his departure, officials at the shelter contacted the authorities. According to CNN, both events were confirmed by Jeff Eller, spokesman for the Southwest Keys Program, the nonprofit that runs the shelter. Eller stated that the shelter could not legally prevent the children from leaving if they sought to.
Rather, he claimed that in the event that a child does leave the property, law enforcement should be contacted. After the officers were informed that the teen had run away, the surrounding area and waterways were searched. Unfortunately, officers could not find the boy, but now have his information recorded in a missing children's database.
More about migrant teen
The teenager, who, according to one source, had been under the care of the facility for a total of 36 days, had arrived in the United States unaccompanied. During his stay, a man in Dallas had contacted the facility claiming to be his father.
While trying to reunite the boy and the man, the source also discovered that the man may not be the boy's biological father. The teenager left the facility while authorities were trying to determine what relationship the man had with him.
The man is said to have been informed of the boy's departure. On Sunday afternoon, a day after the event, he stated that the boy had contacted him, informing him that he had crossed the Rio Grande river, and was back in Mexico. It has also been said that he is providing the boy with funds to travel back to Honduras.
"I can tell you he's alive," said the source.
If found, due to the fact that the unaccompanied child ran away, he will be returned to the custody of the Department of Homeland Security.
He will also be re-referred to the Office of Refugee Resettlement, stated the source.
Inside the migrant shelter
A report by Business Insider UK states that just a few days ago, a number of reporters were allowed inside to tour Casa Padre. Photos of the shelter then went viral. The media described grim living conditions, such as cramped sleeping quarters, and the children having to wear barcodes around their wrists to be scanned at mealtimes.
The shelter, which was previously a Walmart, opened just last year, and is the largest migrant children's shelter in the country, housing almost 1500 boys. Boys at the shelter are those who were separated from parents under the "zero tolerance" border policy," or those like the missing teen, that arrived in the US unaccompanied.