Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey is demanding the immediate release of a 14-year-old girl from Marlborough. Federal immigration agents detained the girl in a church parking lot on Tuesday before transporting her out of the state later that day. This move has drawn fierce condemnation from state and federal lawmakers and prompted emergency legal action.
A federal judge has since ordered the girl to be returned to Massachusetts and reunited with her family, Healey noted in a statement Wednesday.
“It is unacceptable that ICE detained a 14-year-old girl in a church parking lot in Marlborough on March 10 and moved her out of Massachusetts the same day,” Governor Healey said. “This is a child. ICE never should have taken her this way or separated her from her support system and legal counsel. It shouldn’t have required a March 11 federal court order for her return. ICE must immediately comply and return her to Massachusetts with her family.”
According to court documents and local police, agents from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI)—a division of ICE—detained three people on Tuesday afternoon, March 10, in Marlborough, including a teenage girl. She was taken to the John F. Kennedy Federal Building in Boston, held in Department of Homeland Security custody, then transferred out of state.
An eyewitness from a nearby law firm told the Boston Globe he was driving past the Marlborough Presbyterian Church when he saw several cars with tinted windows and what appeared to be federal agents in the parking lot. The scene in the afternoon alarmed the local community.
U.S. Representative Lori Trahan, who represents Massachusetts’ 3rd Congressional District, including Marlborough, described the incident as an attempt by federal agents to use the girl as leverage against her father. Trahan said the teenager, who has no criminal history, was used to coerce her father into surrendering for deportation during an overnight attempt to use her as a hostage.
“A 14-year-old girl should never have been detained,” Rep. Trahan wrote on social media after the court order. “That it required a court order to return a child to her family shows deep issues in DHS policy.” As a mother, Trahan added: “I am furious.”
ICE offered a different account. According to an ICE spokesperson, agents were pursuing two Brazilian nationals: Igor Jose Cordeiro Ferreira, 28, and Lucas Da Silva Senes De Almeida, 25, alleged affiliates of Primeiro Comando da Capital, a South American crime syndicate. ICE said the girl was with the men, did not identify either as a legal guardian, and agents confirmed she was not related to them.
“Based on this information and to ensure the safety and security of the minor, she was placed in the custody of Health and Human Services, Office of Refugee Resettlement, within hours of the initial encounter,” the ICE spokesperson said. “As standard protocol, she will remain in ORR custody pending the identification of legal guardians.”
The girl’s attorney disputes that framing. Legal filings state the teenager lives with her two older brothers, both American citizens. A habeas corpus petition argued that federal agents detained this fourteen-year-old and continued to hold her in a federal building. The petition asserts there is no sign that the government has met statutory and constitutional limits on detaining minors in immigration custody.
On Wednesday, a federal judge sided with the girl’s legal team and ordered immigration officials to release her and reunite her with her family. As of Wednesday evening, it remained unclear whether ICE had complied. Rep. Trahan urged that the girl be released in time to return to school on Thursday.
Wednesday’s incident is the latest flashpoint in an escalating standoff between Governor Healey’s administration and federal immigration authorities. Just days earlier, on March 6, Healey sent a letter to then DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons, demanding the full identities, legal grounds for arrest, detention locations, and hearing dates for everyone arrested in Massachusetts since January 2025.
Healey has pointed to ICE’s own data showing that 46% of those arrested in a recent enforcement surge in Massachusetts had no criminal background. The Marlborough Police Department confirmed Wednesday that its officers played no role in Tuesday’s operation, stating that none of the three individuals detained were ever transferred to local custody and that the department had not participated in their transport.
“Marlborough police prioritize public safety and trust, respecting federal jurisdiction,” the department said, adding it does not comment on ongoing federal investigations.
The detention of the Marlborough girl echoes a high-profile June 2025 case. Marcelo Gomes da Silva, 18, a Milford High School student who had lived in Massachusetts since age 7, was arrested by ICE while headed to volleyball practice. A federal judge intervened. Authorities later agreed he would not be removed from the U.S. without court notice. After six days in detention, Gomes da Silva was released on bond.
Governor Healey’s office says it will keep pressing for transparency and accountability from federal immigration authorities. As of Wednesday night, ICE had not issued a statement confirming compliance with the reunification order.
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Editorial Notice: This article was originally published in English. Translations into other languages are generated automatically using AI software and may not fully reflect the accuracy of the original text. For the authoritative version, please refer to the English version.
