Nantucket's migrant crisis handling called out after quiet island rocked by wave of violent attacks

After U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested several illegal immigrants on Nantucket for alleged sex crimes, a local GOP chair is urging more vetting as migrant violence infiltrates Massachusetts’ wealthy liberal enclaves.

ICE has arrested at least eight people, including a member of the violent gang MS-13, on the islands of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard since August on various criminal charges.

Toby Brown, chair of the Nantucket GOP and a Nantucket resident for three decades, was among the few on the island who would openly voice concerns about illegal immigration in the wake of the arrests. 

"We need to have this conversation and not just keep having this... idea that if you're somehow worried, you're a racist… people just need to not be afraid to speak up," Brown told Fox News Digital. 

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"This island was more worried about when Kevin Spacey got charged back in 2016 [than the recent sex crimes allegedly perpetrated by illegal immigrants]," he said.

Five migrants from Guatemala and El Salvador were picked up by ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations of Boston in separate actions over the course of three days in September.

Elmer Sola and Bryan Daniel Aldana-Arevalo were charged with sex crimes against children; Felix Alberto Perez-Gomez and Gean Do Amaral Belafronte were charged with sex crimes against adults; and Angel Gabriel Deras-Mejia was a documented member MS-13, the agency said.

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General view of low cost housing, where many island immigrants live, in the Richmond development  in Nantucket, MA, Friday, September 27, 2024. The island has seen a number of arrests of migrants in recent months. (David McGlynn for Fox News Digital)

"This was not a surprise to us," Brown said. "When you follow the court reports in the last year or so, there have been quite a bit of violent arrests… maybe it was surprising ICE came out here, but not surprising that they had to come out here."

Immigrants – many who have obtained H2B visas for seasonal work – are a vital part of Nantucket's tourism industry and make up a large portion of the summer vacation spot's year-round population.

Local bars, like The Muse, host packed Latino nights each week, and 41.5% of students in Nantucket's public schools speak a language other than English at home, according to online school district data. 

A general view of boat docks in Nantucket, MA, Friday, September 27, 2024. The island has seen a number of arrests of migrants in recent months. (David McGlynn for Fox News Digital)

Brown said most immigrants on the idyllic island off the coast of Cape Cod are good and active community members, including those residing there illegally. Many of his friends and coworkers are immigrants, he said. But many residents are still concerned about those who may be running from violent pasts in their home countries.

"We owe it to our immigrants who have come here, whether they're legal or not," he said. "There's a lot of them that just want a better life. And they come here and they're doing the best they can. They raise their children here and they don't want this crime."

"They didn't come to Nantucket to live the way they did back in El Salvador or Mexico or wherever they came from," he added.

WEALTHY, LIBERAL NANTUCKET, MARTHA'S VINEYARD SEE 6 ICE ARRESTS IN ONE MONTH, INCLUDING MS-13 GANG MEMBER

General view of Nantucket, MA, Friday, September 27, 2024 showing Guatamalan and El Salvadoran workers removing a tree. The island has seen a number of arrests of migrants in recent months. (David McGlynn for Fox News Digital)

Brown said whether someone is in the country illegally is less important to him than whether they're "good people" and whether they've been vetted by employers, landlords and others in positions to help keep the island safe.

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"I ask that I hope that employers, landlords, everybody just, we just need to vet out people and, you know, and maybe there are more ways we can do that," Brown said. 

"When I started my business in 2002, I wanted to make sure I hired good people for my family and my community… I really tried to vet [employees]," said Brown, who owns a lawn sprinkler company. "I would just feel horrible if, because of me wanting to make a little more money or being a little more lazy, that I just hire somebody and I hope all goes well. And [that hire] committed some heinous crime.

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"We're are all human beings. [But] my biggest thing is, I want my family to be safe. I want you to be safe. That's what we need in this country, is for people to be safe."