The arrests Musk was referring to were made by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations unit, or ERO.

The agency has long complained that Massachusetts law enforcement and the state’s court system are not cooperating with its efforts to arrest undocumented immigrants facing criminal charges and begin deportation proceedings.

On Nov. 12, authorities arrested Mynor Stiven De Paz-Munoz, 21, in Great BarringtonICE said.

A Guatemalan national, De Paz-Munoz entered the U.S. illegally in 2020, and Great Barrington police arrested him in February on charges of forcible rape of a child, rape of a child and indecent assault and battery on a person 14 years or older. , ICE said.

The agency said it filed an immigration detainer with local police, but the request was ignored and he was released on bail before immigration agents could arrest him to begin deportation proceedings.

On November 18, in Methuen, immigration agents arrested Alexandre Romao De Oliveira, 41, a Brazilian national convicted of child rape in his home country, ICE said. He fled Brazil before a 14-year prison sentence was imposed and entered the U.S. illegally in 2022, the agency said.

These arrests followed the October 31 arrest in Bourne of Andre Tiago Lucas, 36, who was convicted in 2016 of raping a 13-year-old boy in his native Brazil. ICE said. Lucas also fled before serving his sentence and entered the U.S. illegally, eventually settling in Massachusetts, according to ICE.

Musk’s mention of “sanctuary cities” in his post broadly refers to municipalities that do not assist the federal government in its immigration enforcement efforts. The issue has become a flashpoint as Trump, who has promised a large-scale operation to deport millions of people living in the US illegally, prepares to return to the White House.

Musk’s comments followed a recent exchange between Mayor Michelle Wu of Boston and Tom Homan, Trump’s incoming border czar.

The progressive mayor fired Homan after her said Sunday in a television interview that local authorities would not support federal mass deportation effortsa clip that was recirculated on conservative news shows.

“Either she helps us or she gets the hell out of the way, because we will,” Homan responded Monday in an interview with conservative news station Newsmax.

“She’s not very smart, I’ll give her that,” Homan said of the Harvard Law graduate.

“There’s a fine line here, and I can’t cross a fine line,” he warned. “I can’t cooperate, but there are certain laws I can’t pass. And I hope it doesn’t pass.”

Wu’s comments did not propose a new policy for the city, nor did they go beyond what many other Democrats, including Gov. Maura Healey, have said on the topic. governor recently said the state would use “every tool in the toolbox” to “protect our residents,” and the state police will “absolutely not assist” in the mass deportation efforts Trump has promised.

Wu cited 2014 Boston Trust Actwhich prohibits local police from detaining immigrants for possible deportation by federal authorities unless a criminal warrant has been issued for the person’s arrest. Under existing Boston laws, Wu saidlaw enforcement will not be required or expected to participate in mass deportations of residents who have not been involved in “serious criminal activity.”

Trump has pledged to seal the border and “They’re Conducting the Largest Deportation Operation in American History.”

This report used material from previous Globe stories.

Travis Andersen can be reached at [email protected].