ERO Boston removes Irish national with extensive criminal history wanted by Irish authorities for assault charges

BOSTON — Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Boston removed a 25-year-old Irish national from the United States who was wanted by authorities for assault charges in his home country. ERO Boston deportation officers removed Hughie Antony Odonoghue Jan. 17. Odonoghue has numerous criminal convictions in Ireland.

“Not only was Hughie Odonoghue wanted by Irish authorities on four active arrest warrants — he also has an extensive history of violent crimes,” said ERO Boston Field Office Director Todd M. Lyons. “Odonoghue represented a threat to the residents of our Massachusetts communities, and ERO Boston was not going to let him evade justice. We cannot allow New England to become a safe haven for the world’s criminals.”

Odonoghue entered the United States in August 2021 at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey with a visa waiver. He later overstayed his admission.

Officers from the Braintree Police Department arrested him in October 2023 for open warrants and the offense of larceny from an elderly disabled person.

Upon learning of his apprehension, ERO Boston lodged an immigration detainer against him with Quincy District Court. However, the court granted Odonoghue release on bail and pretrial conditions.

During a routine admission list screening of all foreign-born inmates at the Norfolk County Sheriff's Office in November 2023, ERO Boston encountered him and lodged an immigration detainer against him.

In December 2023, the Concord District Court convicted Odonoghue of larceny, conspiracy and home improvement fraud and sentenced him to a one-year suspended sentence, three years of probation, and release upon paying $30,000 restitution.

Following his release on the same day, the Middlesex County Sheriff’s Office transferred Odonoghue to ERO Boston’s custody.

ERO Boston served Odonoghue with an administrative order charging removability as a noncitizen who stayed longer than permitted.

While Odonoghue was in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody, ERO Boston was notified of Odonoghue’s substantial criminal history in Ireland, which included four active warrants for assault causing harm, failing to appear, careless driving and a summary offense.

Deportation officers from ERO Boston removed Odonoghue from the United States Jan. 17 and turned him over to authorities in Ireland.

ERO conducts removals of individuals without a lawful basis to remain in the United States, including at the order of immigration judges with the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR). EOIR is a separate entity from DHS and ICE. Immigration judges in these courts make decisions based on the merits of each individual case, determining if a noncitizen is subject to a final order of removal or eligible for certain forms of relief from removal.

As one of ICE’s three operational directorates, ERO is the principal federal law enforcement authority in charge of domestic immigration enforcement. ERO’s mission is to protect the homeland through the arrest and removal of those who undermine the safety of U.S. communities and the integrity of U.S. immigration laws, and its primary areas of focus are interior enforcement operations, management of the agency’s detained and non-detained populations, and repatriation of noncitizens who have received final orders of removal. ERO’s workforce consists of more than 7,700 law enforcement and non-law enforcement support personnel across 25 domestic field offices and 208 locations nationwide, 30 overseas postings, and multiple temporary duty travel assignments along the border.

Source: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE.gov)