A 43-year-old Brazilian national was indicted on federal charges after being arrested by ICE agents in Somerville for illegally re-entering the United States following his 2014 deportation. The defendant faces up to two years in prison if convicted of unlawful reentry.
During a month-long operation called Operation Patriot in May 2025, ICE and federal law enforcement partners apprehended 1,461 individuals in Massachusetts, with more than half having significant criminal convictions or charges. The enforcement effort targeted transnational organized crime, gangs, and egregious illegal alien offenders, including members of MS-13, Tren de Aragua, and other criminal organizations.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested four individuals convicted of child sex crimes across Massachusetts, California, New York, and Texas. The arrests included those with prior convictions for crimes against minors, with ICE emphasizing its commitment to removing dangerous criminal aliens from communities.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, partnering with the FBI, DEA, ATF, and U.S. Coast Guard, conducted enforcement operations that resulted in approximately 40 apprehensions on Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard. The operation included arrests of individuals with criminal backgrounds, including a documented member of MS-13 and at least one child sex offender.
A Massachusetts daycare was shut down after authorities discovered an illegal immigrant from Brazil living on the premises who had fled his home country to escape a nine-year prison sentence for raping a 13-year-old. State investigators found no record of his presence at the facility despite having conducted five separate inspections.
A Russian citizen was arrested on charges of smuggling clawed frog embryos and embryonic samples into the United States without proper declaration, discovered in her checked baggage at Logan International Airport after a canine alert. She initially denied carrying the items but later admitted to having biological material while claiming unfamiliarity with declaration requirements.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement apprehended Jomar Henrique Souza-Santos, 33, in Marlboro, wanted by Brazilian authorities for homicide and illegal firearm possession. Souza-Santos had illegally entered the U.S. near El Paso in July 2022 and was subsequently released on an order of recognizance pending immigration proceedings.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested Ilma Leandro De Oliveira, 53, an illegally present Brazilian national charged with seven sex crimes against a Massachusetts child. De Oliveira had been previously deported in 2007 but illegally re-entered the United States at an unknown date and location.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested a 32-year-old Dominican national in Worcester for violating immigration laws and committing violent crimes. The individual, who had legally entered the U.S. in 2003, was previously convicted of indecent assault and battery and faced additional charges related to family violence.
A federal jury convicted Jean Morose Viliena, the former Mayor of Les Irois, Haiti, on three counts of visa fraud for lying on his U.S. immigration application by falsely claiming he had not participated in extrajudicial killings and political violence. Viliena was sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV to nine years in prison and three years of supervised release.
