ERO Boston arrests unlawfully present Brazilian charged with multiple counts of assault and battery in Massachusetts and Connecticut
BOSTON — Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Boston arrested an unlawfully present Brazilian national charged with six counts of assault and battery with a firearm in Massachusetts and one count of a similar charge in Connecticut. Deportation officers from ERO Boston made the apprehension Feb. 8 in Clinton.
“This Brazilian national has allegedly displayed a propensity for violent and dangerous behavior,” said ERO Boston Field Office Director Todd M. Lyons. “We simply cannot allow him to continue to ostensibly threaten the law abiding residents of our New England neighborhoods. Violent criminal suspects who are not legally present in the U.S. will be aggressively pursued by our officers. The safety of the residents of New England will continue to be our number one priority.”
The 22 year-old citizen of Brazil unlawfully entered the United States near Santa Theresa, New Mexico, in March 2019. He was detained and released on his own recognizance pending a future hearing before a Department of Justice immigration judge.
In December 2021, the Brazilian national was charged as a fugitive from justice in a Worcester district court.
Authorities in Danbury, Connecticut, issued a criminal warrant for the Brazilian fugitive in October 2022 for the charge of aggravated assault with a gun; the warrant remains active. Later that month, authorities in Worcester charged him with assault with dangerous weapon — a firearm, carrying a firearm with ammunition, possession of firearm without a permit, and a firearm violation within 500 feet of a dwelling.
In April 2023, the unlawfully present Brazilian was indicted in the Worcester Superior Court on six counts of assault and battery with a firearm, two counts of possession of a firearm and one count of possession of ammunition without a firearms identification card.
ERO Boston lodged an immigration detainer against the unlawfully present Brazilian with the Worcester Police Department in October 2022. However, the Worcester Massachusetts District Court chose to ignore the immigration detainer and released him following his arraignment on multiple felony firearms charges.
After ERO Boston confirmed his presence in its area of responsibility, deportation officers arrested him in Clinton on Feb. 8. He remains in ERO Boston’s custody pending removal proceedings.
Noncitizens placed into removal proceedings receive their legal due process from federal immigration judges with the 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 2023, ERO made 170,590 administrative arrests, a 19.5% increase over the previous year. ERO arrested 73,822 noncitizens with a criminal history; those arrested had an average of four charges and convictions per individual, including more than 33,209 charges or convictions for assault, 7,520 for weapons offenses, 1,713 for homicide-related offenses, and 1,615 for kidnapping. Removals also included 3,406 known or suspected gang members, 139 known or suspected terrorists, seven human rights violators, and 108 foreign fugitives wanted by their governments for crimes including homicide, rape, terrorism and kidnapping. Also in fiscal year 2023, ERO conducted 142,580 removals to more than 170 countries worldwide.
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 the 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.
Members of the public can report crime and suspicious activity by calling 866-347-2423 or completing the online tip form.
Learn more about ICE’s mission to increase public safety in your community on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @EROBoston.
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