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NEW BEDFORD — A Guatemalan fisherman was detained Wednesday in an apparent immigration enforcement operation at the Port of New Bedford.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement alongside the U.S. Coast Guard detained Luis Guillermo Castro Alvarez, 31, early Wednesday morning, according to local activists. According to the ICE detainee locator, he is currently being held at the Plymouth County Correctional Facility in Plymouth.
Alvarez is the 43rd New Bedford immigrant detainee confirmed by The Light since February. Neither representatives for ICE or the Port immediately responded to emails requesting comment.
“The U.S. Coast Guard is providing vessel support to ICE as requested, in a supporting role,” a Coast Guard spokesperson said in an email. “The Coast Guard is focused on ensuring safe and secure operations in support of federal partners.”
Adrian Ventura, executive director of the Centro Comunitario de Trabajadores, said he has been in communication with Alvarez’s wife. He said Alvarez was detained after returning from a fishing trip while on his boat at a dock in the port.
Ventura said Alvarez initially entered the country as a minor but that his guardians never took him to his immigration court hearings, resulting in a loss of status.
According to New Bedford District Court records obtained by The Light, Alvarez had two misdemeanor charges of unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle and leaving the scene of property damage in 2023. The first charge was dismissed by the state in May 2024 and the second on May 27, 2025. Alvarez admitted that the prosecution had enough facts to pursue the case but did not plead guilty, resulting in a dismissal of the charges by the Probation Department.
In December 2024, he received misdemeanor charges on a first offense of operating under the influence of liquor and negligent operation of a motor vehicle. Both charges were still in active process and his last court date took place on July 7. Another hearing in the case is scheduled for Aug. 8.
Uptick in activity
The move happened two days after ICE detained an undocumented Salvadoran man, Juan Carlos Abarca-Jovel, 48, near his home in the South End as he was leaving for a trial at New Bedford District Court. The arrest was ICE’s first in the city since June 19.
The hearing stemmed from a misdemeanor assault and battery charge from a February incident when Abarca-Jovel allegedly slapped his adult son across the face. According to court documents, the charges were dismissed due to a failure to prosecute.
“The Commonwealth answered not ready for trial as the victim in the case, the defendant’s adult son, was not present and he was a necessary witness in order for the trial to go forward,” Second Assistant District Attorney for Bristol County Jennifer Sowa told The Light in an email, adding that Abarca-Jovel was not in custody at the time. “My office attempted contact previously to secure his appearance. The court dismissed the case as the commonwealth could not move forward to trial, and we did not expect the defendant’s son to appear if another date was given.
“The defense attorney represented to the Court that the defendant was taken into ICE custody somewhere outside of the courthouse,” she continued. “My staff were not present when that happened, had not communicated with ICE about this defendant nor did they receive any communication from ICE about this defendant.”
According to the ICE detainee locator, Abarca-Jovel is still being held at the Plymouth County Correctional Facility.
Combined with the recent suspension of 47 employees at Market Basket following an I-9 Inspection — the result of a two-year long investigation according to the grocery chain — local activists said they feel that a second wave of enforcement actions is taking place in the city.
“We expected this uptick after the passage of the new federal bill which significantly increases the budget of ICE enforcement,” said Alicia Lopez Gonzalez, director of Mujeres Victoriosas. “We just didn’t know how soon it would happen and how often we would see the impact of that bill.”
The budget bill recently signed into law by President Donald Trump will increase ICE’s annual budget from about $8 billion to over $27 billion, a 218% increase. It means that the agency would have a budget larger than that of the armed forces of Turkey, NATO’s second largest military.
The agency will look to double the number of ERO agents in its ranks to about 10,000 with the funding. It will also aim to use $45 billion to increase its detention capacity through new 287(g) agreements, contracts with private prison companies, and new detention facilities, to increase the number of beds on hand from 56,000 to over 100,000.
“These actions will just continue to create chaos and trauma in the community,” Gonzalez said. “We continue to see men being targeted, leaving behind women and children.
“This will impact the economy,” she continued. “These actions impact families’ [finances] and it destroys the trust in law enforcement, especially in New Bedford,” where officers have been working hard to improve relations with the immigrant community.
Ventura told The Light in Spanish that he worries about what he believes is coming soon.
“I think we’re going to see these actions cause more fear in the community,” he said. “And we’re going to see firings in the fishing industries.”
Gonzalez added that immigrant communities in New Bedford are at a loss as to who to turn to.
“People in the process of obtaining legal status, applying for asylum, and in the process of adjusting their status are also being targeted and detained,” she said. “Our community doesn’t know who to trust anymore.”
Email Kevin G. Andrade at kandrade@newbedfordlight.org.
The Guatemalans are some the nicest people in New Bedford.
ICE Thugs, the ugliest.
Nice people don’t break immigration laws that have been in effect for decades. There’s a proper way to enter our country. If laws are ignored and broken, there are consequences, including criminal charges and deportation. Why should illegals be treated differently than others. If I break laws I can expect to be charged and prosecuted. No freebies for hard working citizens, just for the nice law breakers.