"You said you doubled down on not helping the law enforcement officers of ICE. I'm coming to Boston, and I'm bringing hell with me. I looked at the numbers this morning, I counted, I stopped counting at nine. Nine child rapists that were in jail in Massachusetts, but rather than honoring an ICE detainer, you released them back into the street. You're not a police commissioner. Take that badge off your chest. Put it in the desk drawer. Because you became a politician. You forgot what it's like to be a cop."
Boston City Councilwoman Sharon Durkan responded to Homan's statement through a post on X that mocked him. Durkan mocked Homan for his brief time as a police officer in the Village of West Carthage, New York, in the 1980s. After briefly serving as a police officer, Homan went on to become a Border Patrol agent and has since worked for ICE.
After facing backlash from her comments, Durkan posted a follow-up on X, attempting to cover her mockery of Tom Homan. She claimed that Homan's background was in immigration enforcement, not community policing.
Despite resistance from city officials, ICE has ramped up its operations in Boston by explicitly cracking down on illegal immigrants with criminal records. One notable case involved a Guatemalan national who was arrested earlier this month for multiple counts of aggravated and forcible child rape. ICE issued a detainer request to the Essex County Superior Court, which was ignored due to the sanctuary policies in place. These policies allow an individual to be released on bail before apprehension by ICE. Another notable case involved a Brazilian gang member who was arrested earlier this month for the rape of a Massachusetts resident. ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston acting Field Office Director Patricia H. Hyde released this statement regarding the arrest:
"Willian Robert Vasconcelos-Dos Santos is charged with horrifically victimizing a Massachusetts resident and represents a significant threat to the residents of our communities. In this case, we appreciate the Falmouth District Court honoring the ICE immigration detainer and allowing our officers to take custody of Vasconcelos in the safety of a jail cell rather than having to arrest him at large. ICE Boston will continue to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing illegal alien offenders from our New England communities."
U.S. Border Patrol arrested Vasconcelos after he illegally entered the U.S. near San Diego on April 10, 2024. Vasconcelos was served with a notice to appear before a DOJ immigration judge and then released. The Falmouth Police Department arrested him on January 20, 2025, and charged him with rape. ICE then lodged a detainer with the Falmouth District Court later that same day. Vasconcelos was then released into ICE custody, where he remains.
Lastly, another horrifying yet notable case involved 21-year-old Brazilian gang member Caio Vitor Guimaraes-Silva. Silva was arrested during an immigration enforcement operation in Massachusetts earlier this month and was convicted of assault and battery against a Massachusetts resident. ICE shared a disturbing image of the arrest of Silva, which shows him flashing a sinister smile at the camera while being taken into custody. Hyde released this statement upon his arrest:
"Caio Vitor Guimaraes-Silva has not only shown a blatant disregard for U.S. immigration laws, but he also presented a significant danger to the residents of Massachusetts. As a documented member of a violent street gang and an alien convicted of a violent crime, we could no longer abide Mr. Guimaraes' presence in our community. ICE Boston will continue to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing illegal alien offenders from our New England neighborhoods."
Boston has also faced logistical challenges when it comes to accommodating immigrants. The state has allocated significant funds of $425 million to go towards free housing and other services for undocumented migrants. City workers have assured local police not to get involved or coordinate with federal authorities, reinforcing Boston's sanctuary status. However, public safety concerns have been raised due to incidents like the arrest of an illegal immigrant who possessed 5,000 grams of fentanyl and an AR-15 in a shelter in Boston. This challenges the narrative that the city of Boston remains secure and safe under these so-called "policies."
Late last year, a former director at a Massachusetts migration shelter spoke out against the widespread violence, rape, and child sexual assault incidents that occurred at shelters throughout the state. One incident in particular involved a father who raped and impregnated his 14-year-old daughter. Ronald Joseph allegedly raped his daughter several times on their journey to the U.S. as well as before and after crossing the border. The Department of Children and Families interviewed the 14-year-old girl before ultimately deciding to remove her from her father's custody. Joseph was then given a ride by taxpayer-funded Lyft to another shelter in the state after he began yelling and threatening the shelter staff.
According to a report from Fox News, the state spent around $1.1 billion in taxpayers' money in the fiscal year of 2024 on feeding and housing immigrants who crossed the border. They were often placed in hotels, which were converted into shelters where most of the sexual assaults occurred on women and children.
Since President Trump took office, illegal border crossings have declined, with the daily "Gotaway" numbers dropping. Because of this, ICE has shifted its focus to interior enforcement in cities, including Boston. In Boston, arrests have reportedly skyrocketed compared to the same period last year under Biden.
