Tipsheet

All Hell Broke Loose When ICE Showed Up in This Town

Jeff Charles
Jeff Charles  |  May 11, 2025 12:45 PM

A chaotic scene unfolded in Worcester, Massachusetts, on Thursday when a crowd of residents accosted Immigration4w135tr and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents as they attempted to apprehend an illegal immigrant.

An angry group of protesters surrounded one of the agents, demanding to see a warrant as they moved a woman who was allegedly residing in the country illegally to a vehicle. The protest prompted a response from Worcester police, who showed up to quell the demonstration, according to The Boston Globe.

Dozens of local officers responded to the scene after receiving reports that a hostile crowd of protesters had surrounded a federal agent. One of the women arrested, a juvenile who is believed by witnesses to be the detained woman’s daughter, was forcibly taken into custody after standing with a newborn in front of the car.

The other woman arrested was School Committee candidate Ashley Spring, 38, whom police said had pushed multiple officers as they attempted to arrest the juvenile. Spring allegedly also threw an unknown liquid substance on them, police said.

The altercation is the latest flashpoint in the aggressive federal crackdown to detain and deport unauthorized immigrants, including the controversial detention in March of Tufts University graduate student Rümeysa Öztürk near her Somerville apartment.

“I was horrified and overwhelmed, watching her be torn away and listening to her screaming,” said David Webb, a Worcester man who said he watched the juvenile be arrested. “I was kind of frozen in place, unable to do anything about it.”

Worcester police said they asked the juvenile, who was holding the newborn, to move away from the car because she was endangering the child.

“Eventually, she complied and gave the newborn to someone else,” Worcester police said in a statement. “As the vehicle moved away, she ran after the vehicle and kicked the passenger’s side of it. It appeared that she was going to run in front of the moving vehicle, and officers took her into custody.”

The infant was not injured, police said.

Worcester officials previously indicated the city would not collaborate with ICE to remove illegal immigrants and that local police would refrain from arresting people due to their immigration status.

Video footage shows residents and protesters shouting at the ICE agents as they carried out their duties.

The Worcester Police Patrol Officers’ Union released a statement condemning the demonstration. In particular, the organization singled out Etel Haxhia, a city councilmember who participated in the fracas. “On Thursday, May 8, 2025, at approximately 11:15 am, the Worcester Police were dispatched to Eureka Street for a call that came in for federal law enforcement officers needing assistance due to a hostile and uncooperative crowd surrounding them,” the union explained.

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Officers arriving on scene continued to call for more officers as the scene continued to escalate rapidly. Police officers respond to a variety of highly emotional calls daily and there is nothing that can be more emotional or difficult to deal with than a call that involves times when families are separated or arrested or taken into custody in front of other family members. These types of calls for assistance can be extremely dangerous and place officers at a high risk of injury due to the high emotions people feel at the time. Our officers always strive to be as compassionate as we can daily. We as fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters understand human emotions and try to be as empathetic as we can while still doing the job we are required to do daily.

The statement further explains that “Because some protesters threatened officers’ safety, police had to make additional arrests. Of particular concern in this case, one of our elected policy makers and someone who has created this difficult task for the police, District 5 City Councilor, Etel Haxhiaj, incited aggression towards the police during the incident.”

Haxhiaj allegedly “participated in the conduct of the unruly crowd and eventually assaulted both Worcester police and federal law enforcement officers on scene,” according to the statement, which further alleges that the official’s conduct “also emboldened others to act in this manner.”

The conduct of this anti-police activist councilor is deplorable and unacceptable. Regardless of political opinions or views, city officials should never condone the assault of an officer and flat-out disregard to the point of violent opposition, the authority of police to maintain safety and public order.

The union further accuses Haxhiaj of breaking her oath, violating ethics, and endangering police officers. 

We demand that the city conduct an ethics investigation into her conduct. No doubt, federal authorities will also review the incident and determine whether federal charges may be coming for those involved. No one has the right to act in such a reckless manner towards police officers, and we demand accountability for all criminal and ethically deplorable behavior.

The target of the operation was Ferreira de Oliveira, who the police arrested for assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, and assault and battery on a pregnant victim,” according to a statement released by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).