(CNN) 鈥 A mother and her three children are on their way back home to New York following their detention by immigration enforcement officials last month at a dairy farm, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Monday.
The third grader, two teenagers and their mother, who have not been named publicly, were taken into custody March 27 as officials carried out a search warrant at the farm for a person accused of having 鈥渃hild sexual abuse materials,鈥 Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, Monday.
During the operation at Old McDonald鈥檚 Farm in Sackets Harbor, officials 鈥渆ncountered seven additional illegal aliens on the premises,鈥 including the mother and her children,鈥 McLaughlin said.
The mother and her children were taken to the Karnes County Detention Facility in Texas, nearly 1,800 miles away, according to the .
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Their detention comes as the Trump administration continues to tighten the reins on the country鈥檚 immigration .
Details on why the family was detained in the warrant were not released until Monday.
Government and school officials denounced the move while community members marched through the streets of Sackets Harbor, a village in Jefferson County on Lake Ontario, over the weekend to the home of White House border czar Tom Homan to call for their release, CNN affiliate reported.
鈥淥ur 3 students who were taken by ICE were doing everything right,鈥 Jaime Cook, the principal of Sackets Harbor Central School District, said in a . 鈥淭hey had declared themselves to immigration judges, attended court on their assigned dates, and were following the legal process. They are not criminals.鈥
鈥淥ur students were put in handcuffs,鈥 Cook told CNN. Asked about reports that the children were handcuffed, McLaughlin said in a statement, 鈥淎ny claims that a third-grade child was handcuffed are not true. DHS takes its responsibility to protect children seriously.鈥
Cook learned about the incident from a teacher who tutors one of the teenagers. When the teacher arrived at the family鈥檚 home to pick the student up, they noticed a large ICE presence.
The operation wasn鈥檛 a raid, Homan told last week, nearly a month 鈥渨e have got to do more鈥 to increase the number of immigration arrests.
CNN has reached out to Homan on Tuesday for comment.
鈥淒uring investigations like that, we have to ensure that any children within that area are safe,鈥 Homan said last week. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a process during these investigations where could these children 鈥 could that family be a material witness in this horrendous crime? Can they provide information and evidence in this crime? Were they victimized within this crime?鈥
After 10 days of uncertainty, Jennifer L. Gaffney, the superintendent of Sackets Harbor Central School District, is thrilled the family is returning home and hopes they can collectively work to heal from the 鈥渢raumatic experience,鈥 she said in an .
鈥淲hat happened to our students was traumatic and unjust,鈥 Cook said in a statement Tuesday.
鈥淣ew York has been consistent: we are open to working with federal immigration enforcement to crack down on gang members or violent criminals,鈥 Holchul said following news of the family鈥檚 release. 鈥淏ut I will never support cruel actions that rip kids out of school or tear families apart.鈥
As the family enters 鈥渢he next phase of navigating their journey through the immigration system,鈥 they are requesting privacy, according to the New York Immigration Coalition.
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