MA Rep. Keating Seeks Answers After ICE Arrests On Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket

MARTHA'S VINEYARD, MA — The fallout from Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity on Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard continues, as Rep. Bill Keating is calling for increased transparency from the federal agency.

On May 27, ICE said they "employed expanded immigration enforcement tactics, which included simultaneous operations on Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, where they arrested around 40 illegal aliens, including at least one child sex predator and a member of a violent transnational gang."

The U.S. Coast Guard assisted ICE with the safe transport of the aliens from the islands, officials said.

It was part of an operation that officials said resulted in 1,461 arrests, claiming that over half had "significant criminal convictions or charges."

On Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, the agency claims of the 40 people arrested, "[many] had U.S. criminality including a documented member of the notorious MS-13 street gang and at least one child sex offender."

Keating, who represents the islands and also Plymouth, is seeking clarity from the organization but has yet to get any information that he's requested, he said in a letter addressed to officials with Homeland Security, ICE and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

A portion of a statement about the letter reads:

"While the specifics of the detentions last week on the Islands and in Plymouth still remain less than clear, and ICE has not provided the information I have requested, this Administration has a responsibility to the American public to not only adhere to the rule of law but also to be transparent in their actions. In the wake of these detentions, families did not know where their loved ones had gone and communities were gripped by fear – but the tactics being employed are intentionally designed to do just that.

The public has no idea who was detained – or whether they were here legally through temporary protected status or as asylees. The public doesn’t even know whether they were U.S. citizens who were misidentified, or who fit a certain profile and didn’t have identification on them when they were pulled over by masked federal agents. The environment of intimidation and fear fostered by the actions of the Trump Administration reflects on everyone, not just those who are undocumented or foreign-born with legal status. United States citizens are living in fear because of the color of their skin, and the idea of an accidental deportation isn’t far-fetched, it’s already happened this year."

In the letter, Keating states a few concerns.

Public reporting found that at least 20 people were detained on Martha's Vineyard and 12 from Nantucket. ICE claims around 40 people were detained. Which number is accurate, and who are the people who've been detained?

"Concerned constituents who observed these enforcement actions" have contacted Keating's office, corroborating reports that ICE actions weren't "narrowly targeted," but instead focused on pulling over commercial vehicles.

"How these specific vehicles were profiled to be pulled over remains an open question that must be answered," Keating said.

Finally, Keating said he was made aware of an allegation that a federal agent involved in the Martha's Vineyard enforcement efforts had a visible "valknot" tattoo, "a symbol co-opted by the white supremacist movement," Keating said.

The symbol dates back to Norse mythology, but its connection to modern white supremacist movements is well documented.

Keating's letter and statement can be found here.

In the aftermath of the ICE activity, life on the Vineyard has been uneasy for its thriving immigrant community, so much so that it's prompted news coverage ranging from local to national.