The parents of a Milford, Massachusetts, teen who was detained by ICE Friday and later released appeared before immigration officials for a summons on Tuesday morning.
Gustavo Enrique De Oliveira was detained last Friday by ICE agents and then released later that day from custody. The Department of Homeland Security said that he was not the intended target, saying they were targeting two other undocumented people.
His parents, Itamar de Oliveira and Lenice Dos Reis, said they feared they might be detained and separated from their son when they appeared at ICE's Burlington office Tuesday morning.
"The way I enter, I will leave," de Oliveira said in Portuguese before going in. "We are not criminals, we are not bandits, and just like we go in, we will walk out."
They did walk out, leaving the office minutes later to cheers from dozens of supporters who had gathered outside.
"Organizing works — they're not doing this out of the kindness of their hearts," Hannah Hafter, lead coordinator at Episcopal City Mission, said immigration officials. "They're doing this because they saw the public response and they knew that they were being watched."
After Burlington, the couple reported to another ICE processing office in Framingham, where officials fitted them with ankle monitors.
Their legal troubles began Friday when Gustavo was briefly detained by immigration agents near their home in Milford. ICE said agents were targeting two undocumented immigrants and later realized Gustavo was not among them.
The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that it "does not target juveniles or children," and once agents confirmed Gustavo's age, they drove him home after his parents declined to pick him up.
The family's attorney, Jill Seeber, said the couple entered the U.S. seeking asylum from Brazil. Their case was denied over the summer, but she explained they remain in the country legally through the appeals process.
"My hope now is that they can be in peace," Seeber said. "The family has complied with every request, and doing so, it's often misunderstood when people say that they're here illegally because they don't already have the papers."
Dos Reis said her son was shaken by the whole situation and requires psychiatric help.
"It's very uncomfortable to see your child go through this," she said in Portuguese. "But thank God everything ended peacefully."
While Tuesday's check-ins ended without detention, de Oliveira and Dos Reis must return to ICE in two weeks, leaving their future in the United States uncertain as federal authorities continue monitoring their asylum case.
"They're treating us like animals," Itamer told NBC10 Boston Monday. "We're not criminals. We work, pay taxes, play nice with society — there's no problem."
"This government just wants to destroy families," he continued, "and destroying families means destroying its own country."
DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin released the following statement to NBC10 Boston.
"ICE does NOT target juveniles or children. During a targeted enforcement operation, two illegal aliens fled from the vehicle on foot. The suspected target of the operation escaped, and ICE briefly detained a 16-year-old Brazilian illegal alien to determine his identity and if he was a potential safety threat, as is routine for all arrests. At the time of the detainment, ICE had no knowledge of the individual's age. Upon determining that the illegal alien is a juvenile, ICE called his parents to come pick him up. His parents refused to come get him, so ICE drove him home.
“We encourage illegal aliens to take control of their departure with the CBP Home app. The American taxpayer is generously paying for illegal aliens to fly home and receive $1,000 stipend, while preserving the option to return the legal way and live the American dream.”