ICE ERO Boston arrests 80 criminal aliens during a targeted enforcement action focused non-cooperative jurisdictions across 6 New England states

BOSTON – Officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) arrested 80 criminal aliens during a 5-day period, from Sept. 21-25, across the New England area of responsibility.

During the targeted action, ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) arrested 80 individuals for violating U.S. immigration laws. Of those arrested, more than 60 were convicted criminals or had criminal charges pending, more than 12 had been issued a final order of removal and failed to depart the United States, or had been previously removed from the United States and returned illegally. Several had prior felony convictions for serious or violent offenses, such as child sex crimes, weapons charges and assault, or had past convictions for significant or multiple misdemeanors.

Arrests include:

• In Marlborough, Massachusetts., a 22-year-old Guatemalan citizen, and registered sexual offender, who has a conviction of indecent assault and battery person over 14, for which he was sentenced to two and a half years and suspended to probation
• In Boston, a 47-year-old Vietnamese citizen, who has convictions for statutory rape of a child, indecent assault and battery of a child under 14, for which he was sentenced to three years and one day imprisonment and five years’ probation.
• In Revere, Massachusetts a 42-year old Mexican citizen, who has convictions for operating a motor vehicle under the influence of liquor and recent pending charges including assault, rape and domestic assault and battery.
• In Lawrence, Massachusetts, a 37-year-old previously removed citizen of the Dominican Republic, who has convictions for indecent assault and battery of a child, rape of a child, assault and battery, breaking and entering, larceny of a motor vehicle, probation violations and recent pending charges to include; possession of a large capacity firearm, possession of firearm by a convicted felon, carrying a firearm with ammunition.

The arrestees include nationals from:  Brazil, Colombia, Cape Verde, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Ghana, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Moldova, Peru, Poland, Russia, Slovakia, Uganda, the United Kingdom, and Uruguay. ERO deportation officers made arrests throughout the following Massachusetts counties; Essex, Middlesex, Suffolk, Plymouth, and Worcester. Arrests were made in Providence, Rhode Island, Hartford, Connecticut and Manchester, New Hampshire.

11 individuals arrested during this enforcement action will be criminally charged in U.S. District Court for illegal re-entry after removal, and remanded to U.S. Marshal Service, pending trial. An alien who illegally reenters the United States, after having been previously removed, has committed a felony punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison.  The arrestees who are not being federally prosecuted will be processed administratively for removal from the United States. Those who have outstanding orders of removal, are subject to immediate removal from the country. The remaining individuals are in ICE custody awaiting a hearing before an immigration judge, or pending travel arrangements for removal in the near future.

More than 10 individuals arrested during this operation were previously released from local law enforcement on an active detainer. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) lodges detainers on individuals who have been arrested on criminal charges and who ICE has probable cause to believe are removable aliens.  The detainer asks the other law enforcement agency to notify ICE in advance of release and to maintain custody of the alien for a brief period of time so that ICE can take custody of that person in a safe and secure setting upon release from that agency’s custody. When law enforcement agencies fail to honor immigration detainers and release serious criminal offenders onto the streets, it undermines ICE’s ability to protect public safety and carry out its mission.

ICE focuses its enforcement resources on individuals who pose a threat to national security, public safety and border security. However, ICE no longer exempts classes or categories of removable aliens from potential enforcement. All of those in violation of immigration laws may be subject to immigration arrest, detention and, if found removable by final order, removal from the United States.

In years past, most of these individuals would have been turned over to ICE by local authorities upon their release from jail based on ICE detainers. When non cooperative jurisdictions, including those within the six states of New England do not honor ICE detainers, these individuals, who often have significant criminal histories, are released onto the street, presenting a potential public safety threat.

Local jurisdictions that choose to not cooperate with ICE are likely to see an increase in ICE enforcement activity, as in jurisdictions that do not cooperate with ICE the agency has no choice but to conduct more at-large arrest operations.  A consequence of ICE being forced to make more arrests on the streets is the agency is likely to encounter other unlawfully present foreign nationals that wouldn’t have been encountered had we been allowed to take custody of a criminal target within the confines of a local jail.

Ultimately, efforts by local  politicians have shielded removable criminal aliens from immigration enforcement and created another magnet for more illegal immigration, all at the expense of the safety and security of the very people it purports to protect.

Despite the severe challenges that local policies have created for ICE, we remain committed to our public safety mission and we will continue to do our sworn duty to seek out dangerous criminal aliens and other immigration violators. ICE seeks straightforward cooperation with all local law enforcement and elected officials.

ICE deportation officers carry out targeted enforcement actions every day in locations around the country as part of the agency’s ongoing efforts to protect the nation, uphold public safety, and protect the integrity of our immigration laws and border controls. These enforcement actions involve existing, established Fugitive Operations Teams.

Editor’s Note: The arrest statistics provided in this news release represent preliminary data that has been manually reported by an ICE Field Office and may vary from official agency metrics contained in ICE’s system of record. Because ICE’s official metrics are reported by Area of Responsibility (AOR), they may differ in content and level of detail from data that has been manually reported by a Field Office.