ERO Boston arrests man wanted in El Salvador for extortion
BOSTON — On April 4, Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Boston arrested an unlawfully present Salvadoran national wanted by law enforcement authorities in El Salvador on charges of aggravated extortion in Chelsea, Massachusetts. ERO Boston initiated an investigation into the man after international law enforcement alerted them to his presence in its area of responsibility. The man, identified by law enforcement authorities as affiliated with the 18th Street Salvadoran criminal gang organization, is wanted on charges of aggravated extortion and participation in a terrorist organization by Salvadoran law enforcement in Guazapa, El Salvador.
“Suspected gang members who are not lawfully present in the U.S. are a public safety threat,” said ERO Boston Field Office Director Todd Lyons. “ERO Boston will continue to arrest and remove individuals who pose a threat to our communities. Our commitment to this is unwavering.”
In June 2014, U.S. Border Patrol encountered the Salvadoran national after he entered the country unlawfully. He was designated as inadmissible and placed into removal proceedings at that time.
The man will remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.
Noncitizens placed into removal proceedings receive their legal due process from federal immigration judges in the immigration courts, which are administered by the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (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. ERO officers carry out the removal decisions made by the federal immigration judges.
ERO officers make enforcement decisions on a case-by-case basis in a professional and responsible manner, informed by their experience as law enforcement officials and in a way that best protects against the greatest threats to the homeland and the integrity of U.S. immigration laws.
As one of ICE’s three operational directorates, 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.
In fiscal year 2022, ERO arrested 46,396 noncitizens with criminal histories. This group had 198,498 associated charges and convictions, including 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.
For more news and information on how the ERO Boston field office carries out its immigration enforcement mission, follow us on Twitter @EROBoston.
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