3 weeks 7 hours 46 min ago Immigration raids net 80 arrests

(NECN) - 80 people have been arrested in a series of raids in Massachusetts targeting gang members. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement says all 80 of those arrested have criminal records.

The arrests, which included 52 people identified as gang members and 28 others, are part of the agency's Operation Community Shield initiative, which targets violent street gangs. An ICE spokesperson says those arrested represent 24 different gangs, including Tiny Rascals, Bloods, Crips, 18th Street, MS-13 and the Deuce Boys and others.

An ICE press release says the four-day operation yielded arrests of 55 U.S. permanent residents who may be removable from the U.S. based upon their criminal history, 14 who were illegally residing in the U.S., two who are wanted on warrants of deportation, and three others who have re-entered the U.S. illegally after having been deported.

Fall River Police Chief John M. Souza said in the press release that the Fall River Police Department coordinated and worked closely with federal agents and that this was "indicative of the ability of the agencies to work cooperatively together to achieve a common goal of public safety in our community."

Those arrested as part of this local gang operation are foreign nationals from Barbados, Cambodia, Cape Verde, Columbia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Portugal, Trinidad and Vietnam.

Immigrant groups have expressed concern