Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) just concluded the largest enforcement operation in Massachusetts history, arresting 1,461 illegal migrants. More than half of them had criminal convictions..
The operation, dubbed “Operation Patriot,” took place throughout May and targeted sanctuary jurisdictions in the Bay State. According to ICE, nearly 800 of those arrested had serious criminal convictions or outstanding charges, ranging from drug trafficking and rape to child sexual abuse and murder.
“This was a massive, multiagency immigration enforcement operation aimed at keeping our region safe from habitual lawbreakers,” said Kimberly Milka, acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston office. “We have removed hundreds of illegal alien offenders from the Commonwealth, including murderers, gang members, child predators and a possible associate of a suspected terrorist.”
The operation focused on cities and towns known to ignore federal detainer requests—orders that ask local officials to hold illegal immigrants until ICE can take them into custody.
Massachusetts is widely considered a “sanctuary state,” and Boston reaffirmed its sanctuary city status in December 2024. That refusal to cooperate made the operation more difficult, federal officials say, but not impossible.
“Not only did they enter our country illegally, but they were released back into our communities by elected officials and sanctuary jurisdictions,” said acting ICE Director Todd Lyons. “These jurisdictions did not want to turn these individuals over to ICE.”
A total of 277 individuals arrested had already been ordered deported by a federal immigration judge, but had refused to leave the country. Some of those arrested were identified as members of transnational gangs, including MS-13, Trinitarios, 18th Street, and Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua.
ICE also reported arrests in Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, where about 40 individuals were taken into custody, including a child sex predator.
Boston ICE acting Field Office Director Patricia Hyde said her agents were forced to arrest anyone found to be in the country illegally, even when they weren’t the primary target. That included Marcelo Gomes, an 18-year-old who was apprehended when agents were actually looking for his father. Gomes is now in ICE custody.
“He’s 18 years old and he’s unlawfully in this country,” Hyde said. “And, unfortunately, we had to go to Milford to look for someone else, and we came across him. And he was arrested.”
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey responded with outrage over Gomes’s arrest, calling for answers from ICE and criticizing the Trump administration for creating “fear” in communities.
The monthlong effort involved the FBI, CBP, ATF, the State Department, and other federal partners. It eclipsed the previous largest ICE operation—“Tidal Wave” in Florida, which resulted in 1,120 arrests. Officials say all detainees will remain in ICE custody until their removal proceedings are resolved.
President Trump, who pledged in his 2024 campaign to carry out the largest mass deportation in U.S. history, has ordered sweeping changes to immigration enforcement since returning to office. These include eliminating “sensitive location” exemptions for places like churches, schools, and hospitals, and authorizing broader use of federal personnel to assist ICE agents.
“When someone who is here illegally chooses to engage in crime… these are not immigrants, they are criminals,” said U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Leah Foley. “And they will be treated as such.”
The White House has reported that over 151,000 illegal migrants have been arrested and more than 135,000 deported during Trump’s first 100 days in office.