Federal immigration authorities have arrested more than 1,400 illegal alien offenders across Massachusetts during a major enforcement surge targeting violent criminals, gang members, and foreign fugitives hiding in sanctuary cities.
The month-long operation, dubbed Operation Patriot 2.0, ran from September 4 to September 30 and exposed just how deep the crisis has become under sanctuary policies that shield dangerous individuals from federal law. The crackdown, led by ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Boston and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New England, was carried out with the help of the FBI, CBP, DEA, ATF, DSS, and the U.S. Marshals Service.
In total, 1,406 illegal aliens were arrested — including murderers, rapists, child predators, drug traffickers, and known members of transnational gangs like MS-13, Tren de Aragua, Trinitarios, and 18th Street. Among them:
- 277 defied federal removal orders
- 3 were known or suspected terrorists
- Several carried Interpol Red Notices or foreign arrest warrants
Acting ICE Director Todd M. Lyons didn’t mince words: “Patriot 2.0 exposed the grave consequences of sanctuary policies and the urgent need for local leaders to prioritize their constituents’ safety over politics,” he said. “Every illegal alien we arrested during the operation was breaking U.S. immigration law, and hundreds were violent criminals who should never have been allowed to roam freely in our communities. Local law enforcement agencies released them instead of handing them over to us in a secure environment, and this puts neighborhoods, law enforcement officers, and illegal aliens at risk.”
The numbers tell a stark story. More than 600 of those taken into custody had significant criminal histories, and many arrests had to be made in residential areas after local officials refused to honor ICE detainers — a dangerous, unnecessary risk created by political defiance.
Lyons detailed how Massachusetts’ sanctuary laws have turned the state into a magnet for illegal immigration: “We’re the number three destination site for all new non-citizens coming to Massachusetts because you have a place where you can get a driver’s license with no ID check,” he said. “You have places that if you were in proceedings with ICE, you were eligible for hotels, food stipends. So there was that big draw.”
The situation has become so severe that ICE agents often find themselves re-arresting individuals who were just released by local authorities. “During Operation Patriot, while we were conducting targeted enforcement… there were still other criminal aliens being released,” Lyons explained. “We ended up almost doubling the number of arrests just because while we were trying to go after the ones we had planned on arresting, the state of Massachusetts… was releasing criminal aliens in real time.”
Lyons also pointed out the deliberate timing of releases, meant to undermine enforcement efforts: “These sanctuary cities just don’t operate Monday through Friday, eight to five. They’re releasing them at two, three in the morning, when they know ICE isn’t around.”
Every person arrested in Operation Patriot 2.0 is now in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.
The operation highlights the ongoing tug-of-war between federal agents working to uphold immigration law and local politicians more interested in virtue signaling than protecting their communities. While Washington debates “comprehensive reform,” ICE officers on the ground continue to do the hard work — defending law-abiding citizens from criminals who never should have been here in the first place.
