About a week after suggesting immigration authorities would ramp up their efforts to find and arrest people in the country illegally, particularly those in sanctuary cities such as Boston, several media outlets have reported U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers have started “surging” through Massachusetts.
A Boston Herald reporter accompanying an ICE official described the scene of a Saturday morning ICE detainment in Everett, one of more than 100 from throughout the state — including in Lowell, Fall River and Springfield — since the surge began Thursday, the official told the Herald.
“This is the result of the sanctuary policies here within the commonwealth, specifically like the city of Boston,” Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston Deputy Field Office Director David Wesling told the Herald.
The effort, dubbed “Operation Patriot 2.0” is a continuation of May’s “Operation Patriot.” In June, ICE announced it had arrested almost 1,500 people across Massachusetts who were in the country illegally during the monthlong effort.
NBC10 Boston reported Saturday that an unnamed senior spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security issued a statement to the outlet.
“Sanctuary policies like those pushed by [Boston] Mayor [Michelle] Wu not only attract and harbor criminals but also place these public safety threats above the interests of law-abiding American citizens. ICE is arresting sex offenders, pedophiles, murderers, drug dealers and gang members released by local authorities,” the statement read.
Wu released a statement to MassLive Saturday night, responding to the recent surge: “For months, the Trump DOJ, DHS, and ICE have been spreading blatant lies and threatening to ‘bring hell’ to cities like Boston who refuse to bow down to their authoritarian agenda, so this unconstitutional attack is not a surprise.
“This country was born facing down bullies, with Bostonians leading the way. Today, Boston is the safest major city in the country because we have worked to build trust in the community, so that everyone feels safe seeking help or reporting a crime. We will not be bullied or intimidated into abandoning the efforts that make Boston a safe home for everyone,” Wu’s statement read.
Last week, border czar Tom Homan warned that sanctuary cities would be targets.
“All these sanctuary cities that refuse to work with ICE, where we know public safety threats are being released every day into this country, especially those cities, we’re going to address that,” Homan said at the White House, according to Politico.
“So we’re going to take the assets we have and move them to problem areas like sanctuary cities where we know for a fact there are public safety threats, illegal aliens on the streets every day,” Homan said.
Another signal that the situation was ramping up came Thursday, when the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the City of Boston over its sanctuary city law, which limits Boston Police’s cooperation with ICE on civil immigration enforcement.
“The City of Boston and its mayor have been among the worst sanctuary offenders in America — they explicitly enforce policies designed to undermine law enforcement and protect illegal aliens from justice,” U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a press release. “If Boston won’t protect its citizens from illegal alien crime, this Department of Justice will.”
The Boston Herald, citing Wesling, reported that ICE is getting help from several other agencies, including the Department of Justice, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Agency and Diplomatic Security. It also has had help in Massachusetts this week from officers from other states, including Texas, California and Washington, Wesling told the Herald.
“Our officers aren’t stopping until we get every criminal illegal alien here in Massachusetts,” Wesling told the Herald. “There is no target number other than all.”
The New York Times, citing sources, reported the operation is expected to last several weeks. The DHS spokesperson’s statement to NBC10 Boston didn’t say how long the new operation could take.
Gov. Maura Healey, the Department of Homeland Security and Boston ICE officials did not immediately respond to MassLive’s request for comment Saturday night.
If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-rave partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
About the Author
