BOSTON (WHDH) - The U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts addressed the recent surge of immigration arrests in Massachusetts, touting the results of months of operations across the state in a news conference Monday.
Officials said nearly 1,500 people have been arrested across the state by immigration officials, 277 of whom have been ordered removed from the U.S. by an immigration judge.
The acting director of ICE called the arrests necessary and said that agents are being forced to take the streets and make those arrests.
“All too often in Massachusetts, people use ICE’s operations as a talking point. But, it shouldn’t be,” said Todd Lyons. “It should be public safety all around… The bottom line is that ICE and its federal partners wouldn’t be able to conduct large scale operations like this without the partnership you see up here. But more importantly, if sanctuary cities would change their policies, and turn these violent criminal aliens over to us, into our custody, instead of releasing them to the public, we would not have to go out into the communities and do this.”
Representative Ayanna Pressley pushed back against the arrests and called them unlawful.
“To the families who have been impacted by these unjust attacks on your families, those joining us today and those across Massachusetts and the country, we see you, we hear you and we are fighting for you,” said Pressley.
U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Leah Foley said that while federal officials want a cooperative relationship with state and local governments, ICE will work around them if necessary.
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