ERO Boston, an office for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), has arrested four illegal immigrants, all of whom were previously detained by or known to immigration authorities, on charges of rape or sexual assault of Nantucket minors or residents, the department announced this week.
ICE arrested Elmer Sola, 49, on September 10. Sola is a native Salvadoran who “entered the United States on an unknown date at an unknown location, without being inspected, admitted or paroled by a U.S. immigration official,” ICE said in a statement. He is charged with three counts of aggravated rape of a Nantucket child and eight counts of indecent assault on a child under 14.
Bryan Daniel Aldana-Arevalo, 28, was also detained on September 10 after having previously been arrested and then released on bail in July on one count of rape of a Nantucket child and two counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14.
“He represents a significant danger to the children of our Massachusetts communities. ERO Boston will not tolerate such a threat to the most vulnerable of our population. We will continue to prioritize the safety of our public by arresting and removing egregious noncitizen offenders from our New England neighborhoods,” Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston Field Office Director Todd Lyons said.
Also in September, ERO arrested Gean Do Amaral Belafonte, an illegal immigrant from Brazil who was admitted into the U.S. in 2018, violated the terms of his admission, left the U.S. in 2021, and eventually returned illegally sometime after that. He was charged with indecent assault and battery on a person 14 years or older.
“Gean Do Amaral Belafronte unlawfully entered the United States, made his way to Nantucket, and allegedly sexually assaulted one of our residents,” Lyons said in a statement. “We have been consistent in our promise to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing egregious noncitizen offenders. This is not a hollow expression; it is a sincere promise to the residents of our New England communities.”
Felix Alberto Perez-Gomez, 44, an illegal immigrant from Guatemala, had been charged with indecent assault and barely on a person 14 or older in Nantucket in August. He pleaded not guilty and was released from custody, until just three weeks later, he too was arrested in September by ICE’s ERO. Perez-Gomez had been arrested by ERO in 2011 as well after he was charged with reckless driving in Pennsylvania, for which he was deported soon after. He re-entered the U.S. illegally at an unknown time.
“We have been consistent in our promise to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing egregious noncitizen offenders. This is not a hollow expression; it is a sincere promise to the residents of our New England communities,” Lyons said.
Massachusetts has eight sanctuary cities, which do not require local law enforcement officials to comply with federal authorities. One of the wealthiest states in the U.S., the cost of social services for the tens of thousands of illegal immigrants to come into Massachusetts over the past few years could nearly bankrupt the state, according to a Center for Immigration Studies report.