BOSTON — Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said the Boston Police Department ignored 167 federal immigration detainer requests last year, not 57 as reported by the city’s police commissioner, and that the requests included serious criminal charges.

Lyons’ disclosure on Monday comes after last week’s 9-4 vote from the Boston City Council to block a formal request from Councilor Ed Flynn that would have required the mayor to provide the Council with specifics on ICE detainer requests ignored by BPD since January 2024, including whether they pertained to “open criminal cases.”

According to Lyons, all of the detainer requests ignored by the city last year relate to illegal immigrants facing criminal charges.

“ICE lodged 167 immigration detainers against criminal illegal aliens in Boston police custody during 2025 — far more than the Boston Police Department is admitting to,” Lyons said in a statement to the Herald. “Ironically, Commissioner Michael Cox says the police won’t honor our detainers because they’re committed to building and strengthening relationships and trust with the community.

“But how does releasing criminal illegal aliens back into the communities they victimized build trust? It doesn’t,” Lyons added. “It shows Bostonians that local police leaders are so politically motivated that they would rather release criminals than work with ICE, which completely undermines public safety.”

Lyons provided a list of “some of the people Boston Police refused to turn over to us.”

The list includes:— Marlon Joel Rodriguez, 36, of Angola, who has pending charges for assault and battery on a family or household member and strangulation. He also has previous arrests for assault and battery on a family or household member, operating under the influence, and assault and battery.

— Philemond Gustave, 48, of Haiti, who has a pending charge for indecent assault and battery on a person 14 years or older.

— Daniel Yoel Nova Cruz, 35, of the Dominican Republic, who has pending charges for felony assault, aggravated assault with a weapon and cruelty toward a child.

— Breno Serafim Almeida Ferreira, 31, of Brazil, who has pending charges for aggravated assault with a weapon.

— Carlos Arody Cuevas De La Cruz, 33, of the Dominican Republic, who has pending charges for assault with a knife and assault and battery. He also has previous charges for possession to distribute a Class A controlled substance and possession to distribute a Class B controlled substance.

— Esmailyn De Los Santos Bernabel, 29, of the Dominican Republic, who has four convictions for possession with intent to distribute Class A drugs, two counts of distributing or dispensing Class A drugs, and distributing or dispensing Class B drugs.

— Oliver Gaffey Oswin, 61, of Barbados, who was arrested for strangulation or suffocation and assault and battery on a household member. He’s also been convicted of improper disposal of a human body, compulsory insurance violations, distributing or dispensing Class B drugs, and possession with intent to distribute Class B drugs.

— Fidel Ramirez-Hernandez, 21, of Guatemala, who was arrested for assault and battery.

— Peter Barrera-Perdomo, 54, of Colombia, who was arrested for shoplifting by asportation, which is a Laken Riley Act charge.

— Cristhofer Figuereo-Cuello, 22, of the Dominican Republic, who was arrested for assault and battery.

Mayor Wu’s office hit back at ICE in a statement.

“The Boston Police Department tracks and reports every civil detainer request received from ICE, as required by law,” city spokesperson Emma Pettit said. “BPD has repeatedly requested that ICE use a dedicated line for these purposes, and we have no way to confirm any communications not received by the department.

“We have also asked repeatedly over several years for the list of names that ICE is claiming, but have never been able to get those facts,” Pettit added. “Under state law, decisions on the release of arrested individuals are handled by the court system, not the police.”

BPD spokesperson Mariellen Burns similarly said in a statement, “In Massachusetts, only the bail commissioner or a court can authorize the release or the continued detention of an individual from custody. The Boston Police Department does not have authority to continue to detain that person once an individual posts bail or is transferred to the court.”

ICE disputed the city’s detainer request reporting last year as well. Cox reported police ignored 15 detainer requests in 2024, while ICE officials said the actual number was 198.

The latest back and forth continues the tension between federal authorities and the Wu administration over President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown and Boston’s sanctuary protections for illegal immigrants.

Cox reported in January that his department ignored 57 ICE detainer requests last year due to the Boston Trust Act.

“The City of Boston Trust Act prohibits a law enforcement official from detaining an individual solely on the basis of a civil immigration detainer request after the individual is eligible for release from custody,” Burns said.

The 2014 law prohibits local cooperation with federal authorities on civil matters, but still allows for cooperation with ICE in criminal matters like human trafficking, child exploitation, drug and weapons trafficking, and cybercrimes, per city officials.

Councilor Flynn reacted to ICE’s latest reporting, however, by repeating his call for Mayor Wu to release information on detainer requests ignored by the city.

“I believe we must have zero tolerance for any criminal activity in Boston, especially violent crime,” Flynn said in a statement to the Herald. “Boston residents deserve to live in safe and healthy neighborhoods.

“It’s obvious there is a major discrepancy between the data provided by the City of Boston and federal law enforcement,” Flynn added. “We need to receive the relevant data and know the truth. I’m once again calling for the City of Boston to release this information.”

Flynn told the Herald last week “some” of his “City Council colleagues were under political pressure from the mayor’s office to vote against releasing these documents to the public.”

Councilor Ben Weber, an ally of the mayor, said last week he was voting against Flynn’s request because it was furthering a “false narrative” that sanctuary cities are unsafe, “and it’s because of our immigrants that they’re unsafe.”

-----------

©2026 MediaNews Group, Inc. Visit at bostonherald.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.