The Trump administration has criticized the Minnesota Board of Pardons, whose members include Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison, both Democrats, after it granted a pardon to a convicted child sex offender, potentially complicating federal efforts to deport him.

The Minnesota Board of Pardons, which also includes state Chief Justice Natalie Hudson, gave the reprieve June 10 to Tou Lue Vang, 42, who pleaded guilty in 2005 to first-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a 10-year-old girl and was sentenced in 2006.

Vang, a Thailand native who came to the United States in 1994 from Laos, expressed regret for the actions that led to his guilty plea and sentencing in his application for clemency and said a pardon could help him stay in the country with his wife and six children.

Vang's victim also submitted a letter supporting the pardon, The New York Times reported.

Vang's plea agreement spared him from serving time in prison. The pardon removed many of the legal consequences of the conviction under state law and could provide another avenue to challenge deportation.

"Gov. Tim Walz's decision to pardon an illegal alien convicted child rapist so he can remain in our country is disgusting," Lauren Bis, acting assistant secretary for the Department of Homeland Security, said Wednesday in a statement. "These are the criminal illegal aliens he and his Minnesota sanctuary politicians are protecting."

Walz's office pointed to the letter the victim provided the board, according to the Times, and said such pleas for clemency carry significant weight. Walz was the Democrat vice presidential nominee in 2024.

DHS cited court filings saying Vang repeatedly sexually assaulted a girl between 2002 and 2004. On one occasion, according to the filings, he offered the victim $10 to keep quiet.

During a police interview, the filings say, Vang tried to justify his actions by saying, "It is a cultural thing ... to marry and have sex with girls as young as 12." He also claimed the victim was just as guilty as he was and should also be arrested.

"Tou Lue Vang lost his legal status following his conviction for repeatedly sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl," Bis said.

"Following the conviction, he was placed in removal proceedings and issued a final order of removal by a judge. This pardon will take away this child rapist's qualifying convictions that made him removable from the United States."

DHS said Vang entered the U.S. in California in 1994 and was granted legal status by the Clinton administration. That status was revoked upon his conviction and final order of removal in 2006.

"The Minnesota Board of Pardons made a unanimous decision to grant Tou Vang this pardon after an exhaustive process which included a statement of support for the pardon from the victim, a recommendation to grant the pardon from the Clemency Review Commission and a large number of community support letters," Ellison's office said in a statement to the Times.

Hudson declined to comment to the Times. During the pardon hearing, she said she voted in favor of the pardon because "we've seen some evidence here of rehabilitation, but obviously the victim's statement here is very significant for me."

DHS said in May that Minnesota's Board of Pardons gave a reprieve to Jai Vang, an illegal alien from Laos who had been convicted of felony robbery with a gun. DHS said Jai Vang's criminal record also included convictions for robbery, robbery of a business with a gun, and driving under the influence of liquor.

"DHS is calling on Gov. Walz to stop these dangerous political games and to stop prioritizing criminal illegal aliens over American citizens," Bis said in a June 1 statement.

Walz, who is not seeking reelection this year, and other members of the pardon board have said the threat of removal is one factor among many they consider and have rejected others seeking relief from deportation, the Times reported. So far this year, the board has denied at least four pardons to people convicted of sex crimes, three of whom were facing deportation.