ERO Boston arrests Ecuadorian national charged locally with assault to murder

BOSTON – Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston apprehended an unlawfully present 30-year-old Ecuadorian national charged in Massachusetts with assault to murder and assault and battery with a weapon. Deportation officers from ERO Boston arrested Daniel Parra June 13 in Fall River.

“Daniel Parra has not only shown a blatant disregard for U.S. immigration laws, he allegedly assaulted and seriously injured one of our Massachusetts residents with a knife,” said ERO Boston Field Office Director Todd M. Lyons. “Parra’s presence in our community poses a threat to our residents, and we cannot allow that. ERO Boston will continue to prioritize public safety by removing egregious noncitizen offenders from New England.”

Parra unlawfully entered the United States at an unknown location, on an unknown date, and without being inspected, admitted, or paroled by a U.S. immigration official.

The Somerset, Massachusetts, Police Department arrested Parra April 16, 2018, and charged him with assault to murder – armed - knife, assault and battery - dangerous weapon, serious bodily injury, and assault and battery. Massachusetts state authorities released Parra before ERO Boston could take custody of him.

Deportation officers from ERO Boston’s Providence, Rhode Island field office arrested Parra May 30, 2018, in Fall River, Massachusetts.

ERO Boston issued Parra a notice to appear before a Department of Justice immigration judge June 2, 2018.

The DOJ immigration judge ordered Parra removed from the United States to Ecuador July 18, 2018.

On Aug. 17, 2018, ERO Boston removed Parra from the United States to Ecuador.

Parra unlawfully re-entered the United States on an unknown date, at an unknown location and without being inspected by a U.S. immigration official.

The Massachusetts State Police arrested Parra Dec. 4, 2022, on his original felony arrest warrant for assault to murder - armed – knife, assault and battery - dangerous weapon, serious bodily injury, and assault and battery. Later that day, ERO lodged an immigration detainer against Parra with the Bristol County House of Correction.

The Fall River District Court released Parra from custody Jan. 12, 2023, after he posted bail in the amount of $5,000. The court did not provide ERO Boston with adequate notice that they were releasing Parra. As a result, ERO Boston could not take custody of Parra at that time.

Deportation officers from ERO Boston arrested Daniel Parra June 13 in Fall River. They served him with a notice to reinstate a prior removal order. Parra remains in ERO custody.

As part of its mission to identify and arrest removable noncitizens, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) lodges immigration detainers against noncitizens who have been arrested for criminal activity and taken into custody by state or local law enforcement. An immigration detainer is a request from ICE to state or local law enforcement agencies to notify ICE as early as possible before a removable noncitizen is released from their custody. Detainers request that state or local law enforcement agencies maintain custody of the noncitizen for a period not to exceed 48 hours beyond the time the individual would otherwise be released, allowing ERO to assume custody for removal purposes in accordance with federal law.

Detainers are a critical public safety tool because they focus enforcement resources on removable noncitizens who have been arrested for criminal activity. Detainers increase the safety of all parties involved – ERO personnel, law enforcement officials, the removable noncitizens, and the public – by allowing an arrest to be made in a secure and controlled custodial setting as opposed to at-large within the community. Since detainers result in the direct transfer of a noncitizen from state or local custody to ERO custody, they also minimize the potential that an individual will reoffend. Additionally, detainers conserve scarce government resources by allowing ERO to take criminal noncitizens into custody directly rather than expending resources locating these individuals at-large.

ERO conducts removals of individuals without a lawful basis to remain in the United States, including at the order of immigration judges with Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review. EOIR is a separate entity from the Department of Homeland Security and ICE. Immigration judges in these courts make decisions based on the merits of each individual case, determining if a noncitizen is subject to a final order of removal or eligible for certain forms of relief from removal.

Members of the public with information regarding noncitizen offenders can report crimes or suspicious activity by dialing the ICE Tip Line at 866-DHS-2-ICE (866-347-2423) or completing the online tip form.

As one of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) three operational directorates, Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) is the principal federal law enforcement authority in charge of domestic immigration enforcement. ERO’s mission is to protect the homeland through the arrest and removal of those who undermine the safety of U.S. communities and the integrity of U.S. immigration laws, and its primary areas of focus are interior enforcement operations, management of the agency’s detained and non-detained populations, and repatriation of noncitizens who have received final orders of removal. ERO’s workforce consists of more than 7,700 law enforcement and non-law enforcement support personnel across 25 domestic field offices and 208 locations nationwide, 30 overseas postings, and multiple temporary duty travel assignments along the border.

Learn more about ERO Boston’s mission to increase public safety in our New England communities on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @EROBoston.