ERO Boston arrests foreign fugitive in Vermont wanted for financial crimes

BOSTON — Deportation officers with Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Boston arrested Myrat Mahadev, a 35-year-old citizen of Turkmenistan, in Vermont on Jan. 30. Muhadov, a noncitizen fugitive, had an active arrest warrant in Turkmenistan for charges related to financial crimes.

ERO officers arrested Muhadov at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office in St. Albans. At the time of his arrest, Muhadov was the subject of an active criminal warrant in Turkmenistan for several financial crimes, including manufacture of counterfeit credit cards with the intent to sell; manufacture of counterfeit money or securities with the intent to sell; criminal attempt-fraud; and preparation for crime-fraud.

U.S. Border Patrol previously arrested Muhadov in San Luis, Arizona, in August after he illegally entered the United States. He was served with a notice to appear and in October, an immigration judge with the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) in Arizona granted Muhadov bond and he was released. The ERO Boston field office was subsequently notified of the outstanding warrants against Muhadov in Turkmenistan.

ICE will seek to remove Muhadov, who remains in custody pending immigration proceedings. ERO officers make enforcement decisions on a case-by-case basis in a responsible manner, informed by their experience as law enforcement professionals and in a way that best protects against the greatest threats to the homeland.

Noncitizens placed into removal proceedings receive their legal due process from federal immigration judges in the immigration courts, which are administered by DOJ’s EOIR. EOIR is an agency within the U.S. Department of Justice and is separate from the Department of Homeland Security and ICE. Immigration judges in these courts make decisions based on the merits of each individual case. ICE officers carry out the removal decisions made by the federal immigration judges.

In fiscal year 2022, ERO arrested 46,396 noncitizens with criminal histories; this group had 198,498 associated charges and convictions. These included 21,531 assault offenses; 8,164 sex and sexual assault offenses; 5,554 weapons offenses; 1,501 homicide-related offenses; and 1,114 kidnapping offenses.

ERO, a directorate of ICE, upholds U.S. immigration law at, within, and beyond our borders. ERO operations target public safety threats, such as convicted criminal noncitizens and gang members, who have violated our nation's immigration laws, including those who illegally re-enter the country after being removed and immigration fugitives ordered removed by federal immigration judges. ERO deportation officers assigned to Interpol also assist in targeting foreign fugitives for crimes committed abroad at-large in the U.S. ERO manages all aspects of the immigration enforcement process, including identification and arrest, detention, bond management, supervised release, transportation, and removal. Additionally, ERO repatriates noncitizens ordered removed from the U.S. to more than 150 countries worldwide.

Members of the public can report crimes or suspicious activity by calling 866-347-2423 or completing ICE’s online tip form.

Learn more about ERO’s mission in your community on Twitter @EROBoston.