Nantucket, Massachusetts – Local parents are concerned for the safety of their children after federal agents arrested five illegal immigrants, including members of the notorious MS-13 gang, on the picturesque island.
Eric Evans, who has lived on the Massachusetts island off Cape Cod for 31 years and has an 8-year-old daughter, told Fox News Digital that the arrest by Immigration and Customs Enforcement earlier this month highlights how much the town has changed in recent years. He said he was there.
The surge of migrants, primarily targeting the summer crowds, remains even as the weather turns colder, and a small number of migrants are said to have committed crimes rarely seen here.
Martha's Vineyard's wealthy liberal Nantucket Island witnesses six ice arrests in one month, including MS-13 gang member
Felix Alberto Perez Gomez, 41, an illegal immigrant from Guatemala, was charged with sex crimes against Nantucket residents. (ICE ERO-Boston)
“What happened to the five rapists arrested in the past?” [violent criminals] You work here and you were walking through the grocery store and you passed us at the gas station? It’s just… it’s not what Nantucket used to be,” Evans said.
“I'm very happy that ICE was able to be here and do its job and get rid of at least some of the bad people that are on the island. Obviously, there are many more. And as a community, it's As a father, that's really scary and I'd like to see something more done. ”
Mr. Evans, a construction worker, said the island's wealthy, seasonal residents were inviting an influx of illegal immigrants who “wanted everything to end yesterday.”
Tommy Hilfiger, former Secretary of State John Kerry, actor Ben Stiller and actress Kathie Lee Gifford are among the rich and powerful to own homes on the idyllic island of about 14,000 people.
“They can cut wood and drive nails,” Evans said. “So I'm wondering who's hiring these people. Do they do background checks on them?”
On September 10, Brian Daniel Aldana-Arevalo, a 28-year-old Salvadoran immigrant, was charged with one count of rape of a child with a 10-year age difference and two counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14.
ERO Boston announced Thursday that it arrested Angel Gabriel delas Mejia, 30, an illegal immigrant from El Salvador and member of MS-13, on September 12th. (ICE ERO-Boston)
ERO Boston Field Office Director Todd Lyons said in a press release at the time of her arrest that Aldana Arevalo “represents a grave danger to children in Massachusetts communities.” According to the Nantucket Current, the alleged victim was only 12 years old.
Elmer Sola, another immigrant charged with 11 child sex crimes that Lyons said occurred on Nantucket that day, Aldana Arevalo and Elmer Sola, handcuffed, quietly sat on the ferry. He was taken to the mainland.
According to the Nantucket Current, Sola was arraigned on Aug. 14, charged and released with an ankle monitor on the condition that he stay away from the victim and the victim's family. However, nine days later he was back in court on suspicion of violating pretrial conditions of his release.
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On September 11, agents returned to this iconic vacation spot to arrest Brazilian illegal immigrant Gon do Amaral Belafronte and Guatemalan illegal immigrant Félix Alberto Pérez Gómez. Both men committed sex crimes against Nantucket residents, Lyons said.
Belafronte entered the U.S. legally in 2018, but left of his own accord in 2021 following an alleged assault. He illegally reentered the country and was issued an arrest warrant in March. After his arraignment, Nantucket District Court released him on $500 cash bail or $5,000 surety bond, according to court records and Boston ERO.
Operation Removal Boston arrested Brian Daniel Aldana-Arevalo, a 28-year-old Salvadoran citizen who was in the country illegally, and charged him with numerous sex crimes against children on Nantucket Island. (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement)
According to a police report, nantucket currentBelafronte pinned the alleged victim to the ground with both hands above her head, kept her mouth closed and licked her lips with his tongue, telling her, “I'm going to rape you.”
Ángel Gabriel delas Mejia, a well-known MS-13 gang member from El Salvador, was taken into custody by authorities on the island on September 12th. Lyon said Delas Mejia is “representative”.[ed] This poses a serious threat to Nantucket residents. ”
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Delas Mejia was arrested in July at Discovery Playground on Old South Road. Nantucket police said he left crying children at the scene while he was “intoxicated, swearing, arms outstretched, and yelling, distracting all civilians at the scene.” I wrote that. He and the child's mother were reportedly arguing over who would take the child home. nantucket current. In August, he was arrested again on charges of assault and battery on a family member.
Another Nantucket father, speaking on condition of anonymity, said one of the gang members was arrested right next to his daughter's kindergarten.
“It's a little scary to think that people like this live here,” the father said outside The Muse, a watering hole frequented by locals. “This is how some people are reacting.”[Immigrants here] It's scary [after the ICE arrests]. ”Well, I have children and I think it’s scary that these people live here. ”
The 39-year-old woman, who has lived on Nantucket since she was 4 and has a daughter who attends Nantucket Intermediate School, spoke to FOX News Digital about the details of the illegal immigrant crime and how her neighbors and friends reacted to it. . ICE raids were disturbing.
“On Facebook, [local newspaper] It covers a lot. “They would post it, but no one would say anything,” she said. “I feel like people are afraid to say. [ICE]. I'm glad this is happening. ” You know, crickets. ”
Asked if she had concerns about the safety of children in the community after her arrest, Evans said: “Of course I did.”
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“My daughter goes to school and goes to the Boys and Girls Club after school. But I mean, they're walking there. …And there's a lot of kids, so they don't have chaperones who can really keep an eye on them. “There's never enough people and all these kids,” he said.
Evans told Fox News Digital that there are “doorbell cameras everywhere” on Nantucket these days, and that a number of “major alarm systems companies” have popped up on Nantucket in recent years.
“Our local paper is published every Thursday, and the crime coverage … has grown dramatically over the past few years than before,” he said. “At least 15 to 20 different people appear in court reports at any given time, and those episodes include numerous DUI arrests, OUI arrests, [and] There are many home invasions. Domestic Drugs of Abuse.
“Obviously, we no longer know where the safe place is.”
Boston ERO told Fox News Digital that prior to this month, immigration officials had not visited the island to make arrests since 2017.
“We never expected to be where we are now,” Evans said. “And things are only going to get worse before they get better.”
