Group of Maryland women arrested by ICE after Massachusetts break-in reveals alleged crime ring
After being released on bail, three of the women were taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Enforcement (ICE) officials, police said. They allege that the women are part of "an organized crime group," which they said was operating in "multiple states."
"This burglary ring will no longer be able to victimize American citizens," said Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin.
On July 25, officers responded to a reported break-in at a home near Neponset Street in Norwood, Massachusetts.
The residents told officers they returned to find several women in their home. When the homeowners confronted the women, they fled in a vehicle, according to police.
An officer later saw a vehicle that matched the description of the one used by the women. The officer attempted to stop the vehicle, but the driver failed to stop, leading the officer on a chase that ended on Dean Street.
Six women then got out of the car and ran into a wooded area nearby, where officers arrested one of them.
Officers then saw several of the women behind a business on Pleasant Street. The women fled again as officers approached. After a short foot chase, officers took two more of the women into custody.
Two more women were arrested as they tried to flee across a river, and the sixth woman was arrested shortly after, according to police.
During booking, police said they discovered that two of the women had altered fingerprints that prevented them from initially being identified. Police worked with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) to identify the women, who all had Maryland addresses.
The women were identified as 42-year-old Mirabela Caldarau, 41-year-old Jajela Chiciu, 22-year-old Flavia Caldararu, 36-year-old Emilia Sardaru, 33-year-old Mihaela Ion, and 21-year-old Elizabeth Sardaru, according to police. They were charged with breaking and entering and resisting arrest.
Several of the women also had warrants in other states for similar crimes, police said. Officers are working with other agencies to investigate the case.
After being arraigned, three of the women were released on bail and taken into custody by ICE. Two men arrived at the courthouse to post bail and were also arrested by ICE, according to police.
The three other women remain in police custody, according to Norwood police. Officers said their preliminary investigation revealed that all the women are allegedly "part of an organized group engaged in similar criminal activity across multiple states."
Officers said the women and the two men are all related.
"These criminal illegal aliens should have never should have been allowed to walk free on Massachusetts streets to steal from Americans—And under President Trump and Secretary Noem, they won't," McLaughlin said in a statement.
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