A community rallies for the release of a beloved high schooler detained by ICE

CNN

2 days ago

Calls to 'Free Marcelo' are echoing beyond the high school campus of a Massachusetts town where a standout student was arrested by ICE over the weekend.
A vocal contingent of students at the high school in Milford – many wearing white in a show of solidarity – staged a walkout on their campus Monday supporting classmate Marcelo Gomes da Silva, an 18-year-old junior who's now in immigration detention.
The governor and a US senator have called for his release. And the school volleyball team – which has a home playoff game Tuesday night – is dedicating the match to him.
'He is a student who was learning every other subject like every other student who is excited about his future,' one classmate told affiliate WCVB on Monday.
Gomes da Silva's detention is the latest example of the Trump administration widening its sights beyond violent criminals and gang members without legal status, and another likely case of a collateral arrest in which someone who is not the target of an investigation is swept up by immigration authorities.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested Gomes da Silva on Saturday while the honors student was on his way to volleyball practice with two teammates, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey said. Agents stopped the car and spoke with all three students.
'By the time I had turned back around, and I was done talking to (the) ICE agent, he was already in handcuffs and being put into the back of the car, which was devastating,' Yago Sampaio, 17, told WCVB.
The Department of Homeland Security confirmed the traffic stop that resulted in Gomes da Silva's detention, saying in a statement the target of the 'immigration enforcement operation' was the student's father. The statement said his father is in the country illegally and local authorities told ICE he'd been driving recklessly.
'Upon conducting the vehicle stop, officers arrested Marcelo (Gomes da Silva), an illegally present, 18-year-old Brazilian alien and the son of the intended target,' the statement said.
'While ICE officers never intended to apprehend (Gomes da Silva), he was found to be in the United States illegally and subject to removal proceedings, so officers made the arrest,' wrote Tricia McLaughlin, the department's assistant secretary for public affairs.
Attorney Robin Nice, who is representing the high school student, insists her client has no criminal history and entered the country lawfully in 2013 using a B-2 visa, which allows foreign nationals to visit the United States for tourism or visiting family and friends. Gomes da Silva eventually received a student visa which has since lapsed, Nice said, though it's unclear when it expired; Nice told CNN she expects him to be eligible for asylum and he intends to apply.
'His strong community ties, consistent academic achievement, and involvement in positive extracurricular and faith-based activities underscore the fact that he poses no danger to the community and is not a flight risk,' Nice wrote in a statement to CNN. 'The actions by ICE do not make the community safer, they just sow fear among … immigrants and their loved ones.'
Gomes da Silva remained in immigration detention Tuesday, according to ICE records.
A federal judge issued an order Monday saying the young man must remain in Massachusetts for at least 72 hours, starting Sunday afternoon, to 'provide the judge who would be randomly assigned the action a fair opportunity to review the merits' of the case.
Gomes da Silva is scheduled for an initial hearing before an immigration judge in Massachusetts on Thursday, his attorneys say, at which time he plans to request to be released on bond.
Those who know him describe Gomes da Silva as active in his church and community.
'I think because of Marcelo and how he acted towards people, is why so many people came out here today to help support Marcelo,' a Milford High school student said in an interview with WCVB at Monday's student walkout.
Healey, the governor, demanded answers from ICE following Gomes da Silva's arrest.
'ICE has had plenty of opportunity to examine whether or not they made a mistake,' Healey said in a video posted to her official X account. 'Unless ICE has additional information that would substantiate that this individual had some criminal involvement, he should be released.'
The community launched a fundraiser to help with Gomes da Silva's legal and court expenses and to help support his family. As of Tuesday evening, it had raised nearly $40,000.
Ahead of its Tuesday night home playoff game, the Milford High School boys volleyball team dedicated the match to their detained team member and wrote in an Instagram post, 'We will continue to pray and fight for our brother.'
'THIS IS FOR YOU MARCELO,' the team wrote in capital letters. 'PACK THE STANDS, NO EMPTY SEATS. WEAR WHITE. WE LOVE YOU MARCELO.'
'Marcelo should have been playing the drums at Milford High's graduation on Sunday, not trapped in a detention center,' said Sen. Ed Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat, in a video posted on X.
'This isn't about public safety,' Markey added. 'This about cruelty, and power, and fear engendered by the Trump administration. To the Milford community, I'm with you as we tell the Trump administration to keep its hands off your kids. And I am with you in calling on ICE to free Marcelo.'
CNN's Caroll Alvarado contributed to this report.