Woman taken into ICE custody at airport after attending Noah Kahan concert in Boston

News Anchor/Reporter

EAST BOSTON, Mass. —

In a crowd of tens of thousands of people who attended the Noah Kahan concert last week was Maria Rosales and her friends from the Color Guard, who had traveled from Miami, Florida, to Boston.

She even choreographed a dance to Kahan’s song, “Orbiter,” and was looking forward to hearing it live at Fenway Park.

However, when she tried to return to Miami on Friday, she was detained by immigration authorities, her attorney, Todd Pomerleau, told sister station WCVB on Thursday.

“This is probably the fifteenth case I’ve been dealing with in the last year where people get ambushed at Logan International Airport,” Pomerleau said.

Rosales, 32, was brought to the United States at the age of 4 from Colombia, but grew up in Miami, according to Pomerleau.

“She’s a salt of the earth girl,” Pomerleau said. “Last I checked, 4-year-olds don’t pick and choose the countries they go to.”

Rosales was also a recipient of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or the DACA program, an Obama-era immigration policy that allows young people, who were brought to the U.S. as children, temporary protection from deportation, Pomerleau said.

“She wasn’t traveling internationally, and all she’s been really doing is waiting for the government to process a form that was filed three years ago that was previously approved several years ago,” Pomerleau said. “She’s been living here. She’s had work permits and a Social Security number. She has a job, works for a dermatologist treating people with skin cancer.”

Maria Rosales was taken into ICE custody on Friday, her attorney says.

An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) database does not detail where Rosales is currently being held, stating that those inquiring about her whereabouts should, “call ICE for details.” However, Pomerleau stated that Rosales is currently being held in Burlington, Massachusetts.

“She’s been there since Saturday. She’s allowed hardly any phone calls, she’s not allowed visits. It’s ridiculous,” he said.

According to Pomerleau, there is a removal order calling for Rosales’ arrest, which he believes stems from an interaction she had with immigration authorities in 2017, traveling in New Mexico. She was briefly detained, he said, and she was given a notice to appear in court. However, he claims that she was never given a date, time or place to attend a hearing.

Because she was a DACA recipient at that time, he said that Rosales believed she was all set.

“She thought her case was taken care of because she was released from custody back there, and she had her application pending, and then DACA was approved,” Pomerleau said.

In a letter of support, a friend wrote that Rosales exemplifies kindness, loyalty and determination.

“She is a DACA child who embodies the American Dream and her presence in this beautiful country ought to be celebrated as she is true image of an upstanding individual,” the letter stated.

A second arrest at Logan

On Friday, Pomerleau said another one of his clients, David Ardila, 33, was also taken into custody at Logan Airport. He had traveled to Boston from Seattle for a World Cup game, and was on his way back when he was stopped.

“He fled Venezuela and he applied for asylum back in 2017, nearly a decade ago. He still hasn’t had an interview for an asylum application,” Pomerleau told WCVB.

He stated that Ardila is a DJ who has worked many high-profile events, adding that he holds a Social Security number and work permits.

“[Ardila] was fighting and just waiting his turn like countless other people, and he got arrested at Logan Airport just like Maria,” Pomerleau said.

According to Pomerleau, Ardila is currently being held at the Plymouth County Correctional Facility.

An increase in ICE detainments

Pomerleau has now been taking on a growing number of high-profile immigration cases. He said that these two cases strike him as incredibly similar.

“These people are following the only legal process available to them. They’re showing up to appointments when asked to. They’re doing what they’re supposed to do, and now they’re sitting in a jail cell, one of them 3,000 miles from his family, and the other one about 1,500 miles from his family. It’s unconscionable,” Pomerleau said.

He stressed that he is now working to get his clients out of ICE custody.

The Trump administration has repeatedly asserted that one of its top priorities is to secure the border, and deport those who are here illegally. The efforts to ramp up such arrests have only grown in recent months.

“Our #1 goal is to keep our officers safe and get criminals OFF our streets. Illegal aliens will be arrested and deported wherever they are. If you are here illegally, LEAVE NOW,” U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin wrote in a post on X on Wednesday.

WCVB reached out to ICE officials on Thursday regarding the arrests, but did not immediately hear back. Massport referred WCVB to federal and state officials.