Bruna Caroline Ferreira, the mother of White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt’s godson, is speaking out after being detained by ICE last month in a dramatic turn of events that left her feeling “heartbroken” and “terrified” for her child.
The 33-year-old, who shares her 11-year-old son with Karoline’s brother Michael Leavitt, was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents while picking up her son from school in Revere, Massachusetts, on November 12.
Now free and reflecting on the ordeal, Ferreira appeared on CNN alongside her attorney Todd Pomerleau and shared an emotional account of her detention - and a direct message for Leavitt.
Karoline Leavitt called out by child’s godmother
Ferreira didn’t hold back when addressing the woman she once chose to be her son’s godmother.
“I think what I would have to say to Karoline is: Just because you went to a Catholic school doesn't make you a good Catholic,” Ferreira told CNN's Erin Burnett.
“You are a mother now. How would you feel if you were in those, in my shoes? … How would you feel if somebody did this to you?”
Despite their past connection, a source told PEOPLE that Leavitt has not spoken to Ferreira “in many years.” The press secretary has not publicly commented on Ferreira’s arrest.
Ferreira, who moved to the U.S. from Brazil at the age of six in 1998, said she was in the process of securing a green card at the time of her arrest. She had previously been protected under the DACA program introduced during the Obama administration.
Bruna Ferreira, the mother of Karoline Leavitt's 11-year-old nephew, was detained by ICE. Credit: GoFundMe
ICE detention was a nightmare: “You think the worst”
The mother of one described being shuttled across the country by ICE, not knowing where she was going next.
“It was a mind-boggling experience,” she told CNN. “You have a lot of time to think in there, you know, and you really think the worst. You think the worst.”
Ferreira was held at the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center before being released on a judge’s order just days before her CNN appearance.
During her time in custody, she recalled being surrounded by other women - including one who was pregnant and others with multiple children.
“I was in such a horrible situation, but they were praying for me and I was praying for them,” she said. “I can't fathom a mother not knowing where her son is for a year and a half, and who's with him, what he's eating, if he's going to bed on time, if he's sick. I can't imagine. It’s cruel.”
Her voice broke as she recalled being moved through multiple states and ending up in Texas.
“When I got to Texas, I asked the ICE agent — because it said ‘Mexico’ — and I said, ‘Can you please, please, please have a little bit of empathy for me and tell me if you're taking me across the border?’ And he said, ‘No, we're taking you to the final destination, your final stop before your deportation,’ which is south Louisiana. Hardly anyone ever gets out of there.”
She said a fellow detainee lent her phone minutes, allowing her to finally contact her family and attorney.
DHS claims disputed as Ferreira defends herself
Following her arrest, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security told PEOPLE that Ferreira’s tourist visa expired in 1999 and claimed she had a prior battery arrest - a charge her attorney has repeatedly denied.
Ferreira also pushed back on that claim during her CNN interview.
“I'm heartbroken. I'm heartbroken for my son. You know, I'm heartbroken for my mother, who has worked for a quarter of a century cleaning houses, earned an honest living, has paid her taxes. I've been a law-abiding citizen. I don't even have a parking ticket. And I'm so proud of it.
“I'm proud of my name and I carry it like a badge of honor, you know, like being on an honor roll,” she said.
“And now my child is sitting somewhere watching them broadcast this 24 hours a day, seven days a week. As a child, he must be terrified: ‘Is it true? Did my mom do something? Do I not know about it?’ Gossip in school … I don't know what's going on in his little mind, and I just want him to know that none of those things are true, honey. And we're to square this all away.”
Karoline Leavitt. Credit: Andrew Harnik / Getty
Toward the end of her interview, Ferreira reacted to a White House statement claiming she “never lived” with her son. That, she said, was completely false.
“Why lie? Because I have so many friends and family that have called me and said, ‘Why would anyone lie about this when it's 2025?’ We have a digital footprint of everything.”
She also added a personal detail about their everyday life: “Every Wednesday, typically, my son and I go to Dave & Buster's 'cause it's half off. We're extreme couponers at our home.
“I don't, I can't … I can't wrap my mind around it, but it doesn't make any sense,” she said. “I'm just as lost as you are. And I'm hoping that this interview gets me some answers.”