The arrests and some removals come days before President-elect Donald Trump takes office.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said it has arrested or removed nine criminal illegal immigrants. Their crimes include homicide, rape, drug trafficking, sexual assault, battery, and indecent exposure.
ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Philadelphia announced on Jan. 15 the arrest of a 53-year-old citizen of Ecuador in Bangor, Pennsylvania, who is a fugitive wanted in his home country for rape. The agency withheld his identity due to privacy issues regarding the case. “Through our significant interagency cooperation and the dedication of our officers, we are able to track and apprehend dangerous criminal noncitizens no matter where they may be in the U.S.,” said ERO Philadelphia acting Field Office Director Brian McShane in a press release on Jan. 15.
“Arresting these fugitive noncitizens is paramount to our missions of safeguarding our national security and protecting the American public,” McShane said.
ERO Philadelphia also announced the removal of Wederson Fernandes Da Silva, a citizen of Brazil, who is wanted in that country for intentional homicide and attempted homicide, according to ICE. “The removal of Wederson Fernandes Da Silva highlights the collaboration between ERO and our international partner law enforcement agencies in ensuring that individuals who commit heinous crimes are brought to justice,” said McShane in a press release on Jan. 15. “Our commitment to public safety and the enforcement of our immigration laws remains unwavering as we continue to protect our communities from those who pose a threat.”
ERO Newark arrested Da Silva in Newark, New Jersey, during a targeted enforcement action and detained him at the Elizabeth Contract Detention Facility in Elizabeth, New Jersey, on March 19, 2024. He was later transferred to ICE custody in Pennsylvania. He was ordered to be removed by an immigration judge in November 2024.
ERO Philadelphia also announced on Jan. 15 that a criminal illegal immigrant was removed to Colombia. The agency deported Carlos Julio Sierra Varela, a citizen of Colombia, on Jan. 12 after he was convicted in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York for international cocaine distribution conspiracy. Another case involved a Salvadoran national, Edwin Amaya-Rivera, 35, who was arrested by ERO Baltimore, and charged with negligent manslaughter, the agency announced Jan. 15. Amaya was taken into custody after the Roxbury Correctional Institution in Hagerstown, Maryland, transferred him to ICE custody after he was released. He will remain in ICE custody pending his removal to El Salvador, according to ICE.
Acting Field Office Director Matthew Elliston of ERO Baltimore gave credit to local agencies that cooperate with federal immigration enforcement as a key to protecting citizens.
“Through cooperation, we can effectively remove individuals, like Amaya, with serious criminal convictions from our streets. Together, we create a safer environment for all Maryland residents, fostering trust and security in the communities we serve,” Elliston said in a press release on Jan. 15.
Amaya-Rivera was arrested in 2022 and charged with negligent manslaughter by the Baltimore County Police Department. He was convicted of the charge in November 2023. Officers with ERO lodged an immigration detainer with the department in early 2023.
The arrests of five illegal immigrants from the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Brazil, and Jamaica with offenses including murder, drug distribution, sexual assault, and assault and battery were announced by ICE ERO Boston on Jan. 14 and 15.
A Brazilian national who is wanted in his home country for murder was arrested by ERO Boston in late December and he remains in ICE custody until his removal, according to ICE.
“This Brazilian national has been accused of murder in Brazil,” said ERO Boston acting Field Office Director Patricia H. Hyde in a press release. “ERO Boston will not allow Fall River or any other Massachusetts community to become a safe haven for international fugitives, and we are committed to tracking down accused criminals who put our residents at risk.”
According to ICE, a Guatemalan national is currently in ICE custody awaiting removal for several crimes committed in the past 14 years in the country and was previously released into the public as local law enforcement did not honor a detainer from ICE.
The illegal immigrant’s name, which is being withheld, had a series of charges including assault with a dangerous weapon and driving under the influence. He entered the country in 2006 and most recently in 2020, according to ICE. In addition, the agency said the Boston Police Department arrested him for assault and battery in 2018, and ERO Boston lodged an immigration detainer against him but the BPD did not honor that detainer and released him into the public.
The Epoch Times reached out to the Boston Police Department for comment but did not receive a response.
The other arrests by ERO Boston included a sex offender, another arrested for weapons and assault charges, and another arrested for indecent exposure and assault and battery.
