Federal immigration officials recently detained Bruna Caroline Ferreira, a relative of White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, in Massachusetts, according to NBC News. The Brazilian national, who shares an 11-year-old son with Leavitt's older brother, Michael Leavitt, was described by a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson as "a criminal illegal alien from Brazil" who allegedly overstayed a tourist visa expiring in 1999. Though she arrived in the US as a child and was once arrested for suspected battery (a case result that remains unclear), the press secretary, at 28 the country's youngest, refused comment, WMUR reported.
Following the arrest, Michael Leavitt told WMUR that "The only concern has always been the safety, well-being, and privacy of my son." The father stated that his child had not spoken with Ferreira since her arrest and declared the mother "should not be sitting in a jail hours away from her family and from her child's life. She's a great mom, and from what I heard, I think he's been a pretty good dad," adding the mother "is locked up in Louisiana, where she should have never been in the first place."
Ferreira is now being held at the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center while awaiting removal proceedings, the Department of Homeland Security confirmed to NBC News, stating she violated her B2 tourist visa that required her departure by June 6, 1999. Her attorney, Todd Pomerleau, challenged the arrest and the designation, claiming she "maintained her legal status" under the Obama-era DACA program and is working on her green card. Pomerleau asserted that "Bruna has no criminal record whatsoever" and that she "is abruptly arrested and taken from her young child right before Thanksgiving," challenging the DHS: "I don't know where that is coming from. Show us the proof. There's no charges out there. She's not a criminal illegal alien."
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt's 'criminal illegal alien' relative detained by ICE https://t.co/i80Ct03dnO pic.twitter.com/szCor8eJBl
— New York Post (@nypost) November 26, 2025
A relative establishing a GoFundMe page for Ferreira claimed she adhered to all protocols after being brought to the US in 1998, stating: "Since then, she has done everything in her power to build a stable, honest life here. She has maintained her legal status through DACA, followed every requirement, and has always strived to do the right thing." Separate source claims indicated that Michael Leavitt's son "has lived full-time in New Hampshire with his father since he was born. He has never resided with his mother." The father won $1 million from a Draft Kings fantasy football contest in 2014 when he was engaged to Ferreira and their son was an infant.
The Department of Homeland Security confirmed that "All individuals unlawfully present in the United States are subject to deportation," which aligns with the administration's strategy. Since taking office, the Trump administration has engaged in a "mass deportation campaign," which includes a push for people unlawfully present in the country to "self-deport" as well as major law enforcement operations involving ICE, the Border Patrol, and the National Guard across the US.
At the time of Michael Leavitt's fantasy football win, Bruna Ferreira told the North Andover, Mass., Eagle-Tribune: "I need the lights fixed on the back of my car." She also added that they needed a lamp for her son's room, but otherwise, she observed that "Other than that we don't really need much. We have our health. We have a nice condo. We really are blessed."
