An 18-year-old high school junior from Massachusetts who was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Saturday while driving to volleyball practice has been released, hours after his family released an emotional video pleading for his return home.
Marcelo Gomes da Silva was released after a judge granted him a $2,000 bond on Thursday.
“It shouldn’t have happened in the first place. This is all a waste,” his lawyer, Robin Nice, told reporters after the hearing.
She said the arrest upended Gomes da Silva’s life.
“We disrupted a kid’s life. We just disrupted a community’s life,” Nice said, according to the Associated Press. “These kids should be celebrating graduation and prom, I assume? They should be doing kid stuff, and it is a travesty and a waste of our judicial process to have to go through this.”
According to Nice, Gomes da Silva had to sleep on a cement floor of a room with 25 to 35 other men, most who were twice his age. She said the room where he was detained had no windows and he was not allowed to go outside or to shower during his time in captivity. Nice said her client was only allowed to brush his teeth twice, and was even denied a Bible during his time in custody.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said earlier in the week that ICE officers picked up Gomes da Silva on accident, as they were targeting his father, who she described as a “known public safety threat.” McLaughlin accused Gomes da Silva’s father of having “a habit of reckless driving at speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour through residential areas.”
Gomes da Silva, who came to the U.S. with his family from Brazil when he was seven, was driving his father’s care when he was detained. His father was not in the car.
After he was taken by ICE, Gomes da Silva’s family released an emotional video begging for his return.
“I love my son. We need Marcelo back home. It’s no family without him,” said his father, João Paulo Gomes Pereira. “We love America. Please, bring my son back.”
After his father spoke, the teenager’s mother pleaded with ICE agents, saying she missed her son and needed to hug him, before his two younger siblings spoke.
“I just really miss having him with me. I just want to give him a hug. When he gets back, I will give him a very big hug. But ICE, please get him out, please,” his younger brother, Miguel, said.
His little sister, Mariana, said she missed having sleepovers and watching movies with her brother, who she said would cook her food.
“I just miss everything about him. I miss when he used to make ramen for me, and chicken nuggets in the air fryer. I just really miss him and I hope he comes back soon,” Mariana said.
“Like any local law enforcement officer, if you encounter someone that has a warrant or … he’s here illegally, we will take action on it,” Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said of the teen’s arrest.
The teenager first came to the U.S. on a visitor visa before obtaining a student visa that has since lapsed, according to Nice.
Gomes da Silva was involved in his community and a dedicated member of both the Milford High School marching band and the band at his local church, Nice said.
In the video, which was filmed in the teen’s bedroom, a drum set is visible.
“He has glowing letters from his principal, from teachers, from his volleyball coach, from his pastor. He has no criminal record. This kid has never interacted with police until last Saturday, and he entered the U.S. lawfully,” Nice said. “Even if removal proceedings are the appropriate avenue in his case, which is fine, there’s no reason for him to be detained.”
The teenager’s arrest sparked widespread outrage and prompted a walkout protest at his high school Monday where students called for his release.
“This is a really active, involved kid,” Nice said. “He is a credit to our society and it is backwards and crazy that we’re putting him through this.”
The judge scheduled a placeholder hearing date for a couple of weeks from Thursday, but actual hearing may not happen for several months, Nice said.
“We’re optimistic that he’ll have a future in the United States,” she said.
With reporting from the Associated Press
