ICE Boston arrests MS-13 member who illegally entered Texas, charged by Massachusetts State Police in southeastern Massachusetts

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, in collaboration with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, arrested a 24-year-old Salvadoran national, illegally present in the U.S. and identified as an MS-13 gang member. On May 14, 2025, ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston, alongside ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New England agents and FBI Boston, apprehended William Alberto Villalobos-Melendez in Brockton.

“William Alberto Villalobos-Melendez has been unlawfully in the U.S. for nearly nine years,” said Patricia H. Hyde, acting Field Office Director for ICE ERO Boston. “As a confirmed member of a violent transnational gang, he endangers Massachusetts residents. ICE Boston will not tolerate threats from gang members to our communities and will continue prioritizing public safety by targeting criminal aliens in New England.”

U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) detained Villalobos on October 11, 2016, after he illegally crossed near Hidalgo, Texas, without proper admission or inspection. USBP issued him a notice to appear before a Department of Justice (DOJ) immigration judge. On June 12, 2019, a DOJ immigration judge ordered his removal to El Salvador.

On March 13, 2025, Middleboro, Massachusetts, State Police charged Villalobos with unlicensed motor vehicle operation and using an electronic device while driving.