Local News
A federal judge ordered that the girl be released, and she was reportedly driven back from New York to Massachusetts by federal officials.
A 14-year-old girl who was sent to New York after being detained by ICE in Marlborough this week was released from custody and reunited with family members Thursday.
Elected officials called attention to the matter Wednesday, saying that they received reports that the girl was being used by federal agents in order to locate her father. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said instead that she was “rescued” from gang members by the agents.
The girl, a Brazilian national, came to the U.S. on a visa in 2019. She was living with her older brothers, both U.S. citizens in Massachusetts. Her mother is deceased, and her father is not involved in her life, The Boston Globe reported.
The girl told her lawyer that she was on her way to a Brazilian bakery with two friends when she was detained in a Marlborough parking lot. The lawyer, Andrew Lattarulo, and a federal judge questioned federal authorities about why she was detained by ICE instead of being turned over to the state, per the Globe.
The DHS spokesperson said that the girl did not identify either of the people she was found with as legal guardians, leading agents to place her in the custody of the federal government’s Office of Refugee Resettlement.
Those two people were identified as Igor Jose Cordeiro Ferreira, 28, and Lucas Da Silva Senes De Almeida, 25, by DHS. They are allegedly affiliated with the “Primeiro Comando da Massachusetts” gang, the spokesperson said. The vehicle they were in was connected to an alleged home invasion in Walpole this year, they added.
On Wednesday, the judge ordered federal authorities to release the girl and return her to Massachusetts by Thursday afternoon. She was driven back from New York by federal officials Thursday and reunited with her aunt at the John F. Kennedy Federal Building in Boston, the Globe reported.
However, Lattarulo told the Globe, the girl was given a notice to appear in immigration court. This is a sign that the government will attempt to deport her. Lattarulo said that he is focused on making sure the girl remains with her aunt and that he will petition for her to receive legal residency.
Democratic lawmakers continued to criticize the Trump administration over the incident.
“In no world is it acceptable, lawful, or humane to abduct a 14-year-old girl,” Rep. Ayanna Pressley said in a social media post. “This young girl was kidnapped, held for hours alone & scared, & transferred to New York. I’m relieved we could work with community partners & legal counsel to bring her home—but it should have never gotten to this point.”
Ross Cristantiello
Ross Cristantiello, a general assignment news reporter for Boston.com since 2022, covers local politics, crime, the environment, and more.
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