A toddler was allegedly sexually abused while in foster care in Harlingen after being separated from her mother at the border, according to a lawsuit filed against the federal government.

The 3-year-old girl and her mother crossed the border illegally near El Paso in September 2025, the Associated Press reported. The woman was charged with making a false statement, and the toddler was placed in the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement.

The girl's father, who is in the U.S. legally, tried to gain custody of his daughter. Officials with the ORR told him there had been an "accident," according to the AP.

READ THE ASSOCIATED PRESS REPORT HERE

After waiting five months, the father worked with South Texas ProBAR to accelerate the process to gain custody.

"The process was so slow that the legal strategy required us to file a habeas petition, basically that the government was not following its own rules, procedures, or the law," South Texas ProBAR Director Laura Peña said.

Peña explained that the law states the government should decide custody within 10 days for a parent who is a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.

Two days after that petition was filed, the man gained custody of his daughter.

During the process of that lawsuit, he also learned that the "accident" he was told about was reported sexual abuse of his daughter by an older child in the same Harlingen foster program.

"He told us that if the government hadn't taken that long, perhaps she would not have endured abuse," Associated Press Reporter Valerie Gonzalez said.

The father didn't want his identity released. He's since been reunited with his daughter, and they're living in Chicago.

He told Gonzalez it was a bittersweet moment.

"He said he's noticed changes in her behavior. The daughter has experienced nightmares after she returned. She also has asked whether she's going to go back to the shelter," Gonzalez said.

Peña says there was a lack of transparency by the government "through the processing of the reunification, documentation, significant delays to transparency with the father about what happened to his daughter while she was in custody."

"It will be a long road for her and for her family to be able to overcome this tragic event," Pena added.

The family is now looking for legal ways to stay together.

"He was glad to be with his daughter," Gonzalez said.

Channel 5 News reached out to the Department of Health and Human Services and the ORR for comment. As of Tuesday night, they have not responded.

Watch the video above for the full story.