Reaction & Commentary
The Massachusetts GOP (MassGOP) issued scathing remarks toward Democrats Gov. Maura Healey and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu after U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced the arrests of three illegal immigrants on child rape charges.
Healey and Wu have both been vocal about their opposition to President-elect Donald Trump’s campaign promise to conduct mass deportations of illegal immigrants once he returns to the Oval Office in January.
This month, Healey vowed that her state police will “absolutely not” cooperate with the expected mass deportation effort by the incoming Trump administration, warning that she will use “every tool in the toolbox” to “protect” residents in the blue state.
Wu also took a stance against Trump during an interview on Sunday, saying her city will not cooperate with the incoming administration’s looming mass deportation operation despite the region seeing a number of illegal immigrants with criminal charges getting released back onto the streets.
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, left, and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu have vowed not to comply with President-elect Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement efforts when he returns to the White House in January. (Getty Images)
Even after the two leaders made their positions on not working with Trump on immigration public, ICE on Wednesday announced the arrests of two illegal immigrants charged with forcibly raping children in Massachusetts and the arrest of a third individual who was convicted of raping a child in Brazil before fleeing to the U.S. and going into hiding after being caught and released at the U.S. border in 2022.
In a news release Thursday, MassGOP Chair Amy Carnevale called the positions taken by Healey and Wu “appalling and disgusting” and accused them of prioritizing the appeasement of the most radical elements of their political base over the safety of residents.
“Parents across the Commonwealth are horrified that individuals charged with such serious crimes are allowed to roam free because local authorities refuse to work with ICE to remove these criminals from our streets,” Carnevale said. “Massachusetts residents have had enough. These harrowing incidents are becoming far too frequent. When our state’s top leaders go on television to proclaim that Massachusetts will protect illegal immigrants and refuse to cooperate with ICE, they send a dangerous message that invites more of this behavior into our communities. By doing so, they are complicit in the chaos that follows.”
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(Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images/File)
“It’s time for Democrats to put politics aside and work with federal authorities to end this alarming pattern in Massachusetts,” she added.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, Healey’s office said, “As part of immigration enforcement, the Governor believes individuals who commit violent crimes like those alleged here should be deported.”
Wu’s office did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment on the matter.
The three suspects arrested by ICE were identified this week as 21-year-old Mynor Stiven De Paz-Munoz of Guatemala, 42-year-old Billy Erney Buitrago-Bustos of Colombia and 41-year-old Alexandre Romao De Oliveira of Brazil.
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Mynor Stiven De Paz-Munoz was arrested by ICE in Massachusetts after allegedly raping a child by force in February 2024. (ICE)
ICE said Wednesday that De Paz-Munoz entered the U.S. on Sept. 24, 2020, near Eagle Pass, Texas, before getting released by U.S. Border Patrol with a notice to appear before an immigration review judge.
He was later arrested in western Massachusetts by Great Barrington police on Feb. 29, 2024, for rape of a child by force, rape of a child, and indecent assault and battery on a person 14 or older.
Despite ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Boston office lodging a detainer with the police department, De Paz-Munoz was released on bail. He has since been taken into custody.
Buitrago-Bustos was admitted into the U.S. on May 4, 2016, at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, though he failed to leave under the terms of his visa.
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Alexandre Romao De Oliveira was arrested in Massachusetts. (ICE)
After his arrest in October 2023, ERO Boston lodged an immigration arrest with the Great Barrington Police Department. Later that month, Buitrago-Bustos was arraigned in Southern Berkshire District Court and held without bail. The charges were elevated to Berkshire County Superior Court on March 18, which honored the immigration detainer and released him into custody of ERO Boston on Nov. 15 after he posted bail.
Romao De Oliveira is a foreign fugitive convicted of raping a child in Brazil.
He was convicted in the First Criminal Court of Jaru, Rondônia, Brazil, on Feb. 10, 2022, and sentenced to serve 14 years behind bars.
But according to ICE, Romao De Oliveira fled Brazil before he could serve his sentence. On April 16, 2022, Romao De Oliveira entered the U.S. near Santa Teresa, New Mexico, without admission by an immigration official and was released from custody after being served a notice to appear before a DOJ immigration review judge.
(Alex Wong/Getty Images/File)
MassGOP spokesperson Logan Trupiano told Fox News Digital that State Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr and House Minority Leader Brad Jones have filed legislation to close loopholes created by a 2017 Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Decision that barred state courts from cooperating with ICE detainers. As a result, the ruling facilitated the release of illegal immigrants accused of crimes on bail rather than honoring federal immigration detainers.
“Filed a month ago, this critical legislation addresses the public safety risks stemming from the decision,” Trupiano said. “We urge the Democratic supermajority in the legislature to put political posturing aside, prioritize public safety and pass this important measure.”
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The immigration issues stretch across the U.S., and on Wednesday, House Republicans pressed Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra for an answer about how the U.S. lost track of thousands of unaccounted migrant children. He was also asked about fumbling the vetting process that allegedly allowed some minors to be sent to gang members and sometimes even a strip club.
Fox News Digital’s Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
