ERO Boston arrests fugitive wanted for child rape in Brazil

BOSTON - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston arrested a Brazilian fugitive wanted for rape of a 13-year-old child in his native country. Officers with ERO Boston arrested the 36-year-old Brazilian fugitive Oct. 31 in Bourne and he will remain in custody pending immigration proceedings.

Andre Tiago Lucas was convicted by the Sole Court of the District of Serro, Minas Gerais, Brazil, Dec. 6, 2016, of rape of a vulnerable person and sentenced to serve nine years and four months incarceration. He then fled Brazil, eventually settling in Massachusetts before serving his criminal sentence.

"This Brazilian fugitive has been convicted of a heinous crime in his native country. Rather than face the consequences for his actions, he chose to flee, falsely believing he could evade justice in Massachusetts," said acting Field Office Director Patricia H. Hyde of ERO Boston. "ERO Boston will continue to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing egregious noncitizen offenders."

ERO conducts removals of individuals without a lawful basis to remain in the United States, including at the order of immigration judges with the Justice Department's Executive Office for Immigration Review, a separate entity from DHS and ICE. Immigration judges in these courts make decisions based on the merits of each individual case, determining if a noncitizen is subject to a final order of removal or eligible for certain forms of relief from removal.

As one of ICE's three operational directorates, ERO is the principal federal law enforcement authority in charge of domestic immigration enforcement. ERO's mission is to protect the homeland through the arrest and removal of those who undermine the safety of U.S. communities and the integrity of U.S. immigration laws, and its primary areas of focus are interior enforcement operations, management of the agency's detained and non-detained populations, and repatriation of noncitizens who have received final orders of removal. ERO's workforce consists of more than 7,700 law enforcement and non-law enforcement support personnel across 25 domestic field offices and 208 locations nationwide, 30 overseas postings, and multiple temporary duty travel assignments along the border.

Members of the public can report crimes and suspicious activity by dialing 866-DHS-2-ICE (866-347-2423) or completing the online tip form.

Learn more about ICE's mission to increase public safety in our New England communities on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @EROBoston.