Flawed Immigration Enforcement Led to Murder in Boston



Bampumim Teixeira, a lawful permanent resident from Guinea Bissau, was arraigned on murder charges this week in Boston, Mass. The 30-year-old immigrant stands accused of having slit the throats of a married couple – both anesthesiologists practicing in the Boston area – during a robbery attempt gone bad. He was arrested after a confrontation with police, during which he was shot several times.

Sadly, this type of vicious crime is no longer unusual in urban areas. What is unusual about this case is that, even though Teixeira had a history of crime, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) never considered him a candidate for removal.

In 2014, Teixeira robbed a downtown Boston bank, twice. Because he was unarmed (he threatened to shoot the teller but didn’t actually have a weapon), he pleaded guilty to two separate counts of larceny and was sentenced to -nine months plus three years probation. Despite the fact that Teixeira admitted to committing two bank robberies, ICE told internet news site Heavy that, “ICE has no legal interest in this individual, though we will continue to monitor the matter in case his criminal charges change his legal disposition.”

You read that correctly. ICE says it has no legal interest in an alien who was arrested by an FBI Bank Robbery Task Force and subsequently convicted and sentenced to jail time. How is that possible?

Elected officials throughout Massachusetts have been vocal supporters of the sanctuary movement. With the exception of courageous law enforcement officers like Bristol County Sheriff Thomas Hodgson, many jurisdictions in the Bay State simply won’t cooperate with ICE. So it may have been that ICE simply chose to ignore that Teixeira had been released from custody. It could also have been that deporting Teixeira after his release from jail on bank robbery charges wasn’t a slam dunk and ICE just didn’t want to deal with negative publicity from pro-alien groups that attempt to turn every criminal alien into a “civil rights” martyr.

There are a number of legal grounds for removing criminal aliens. The simplest and most straightforward is what is known as an immigration “aggravated felony.” Criminal aliens deported as aggravated felons are ineligible for relief from removal and are permanently barred from re-entering the United States. Therefore, ICE trial attorneys would prefer to pursue aggravated felony charges, when they can. But aliens convicted of other crimes are still subject to deportation.

It doesn’t appear that Teixeira was removable as an aggravated felon because his robbery conviction didn’t result in a sentence of one year or more (although it would be impossible to tell definitively without looking at court records). Nevertheless, two larceny convictions, would have qualified Teixeira for removal for having been convicted of two “crimes involving moral turpitude” (CIMT). Aliens who commit crimes that “shock the public conscience as being inherently base, vile, or depraved” and “contrary to the rules of morality” may be deported. Theft, committed with the intent to permanently deprive an owner of property, has repeatedly been held to constitute a CIMT.

It would be impossible to create an immigration system that only admits aliens who will never commit a criminal offense. Immigrants are human, and even the most law-abiding people may offend in exigent circumstances. The problem in this case was that multiple agencies charged with protecting the American public were well aware that Bampumim Teixeira was a dangerous criminal. Yet, none of them chose to do anything about it. The end result: Two more Americans were sacrificed at the politically correct altar of open borders and immigrants’ “rights.” If ICE continues to insist that it must “prioritize” the removal of certain immigration violators, it should bend over backwards to deport every criminal alien who poses a threat to the American public.

About Author

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Matthew J. O’Brien joined the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) in 2016. Matt is responsible for managing FAIR’s research activities. He also writes content for FAIR’s website and publications. Over the past twenty years he has held a wide variety of positions focusing on immigration issues, both in government and in the private sector. Immediately prior to joining FAIR Matt served as the Chief of the National Security Division (NSD) within the Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate (FDNS) at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), where he was responsible for formulating and implementing procedures to protect the legal immigration system from terrorists, foreign intelligence operatives, and other national security threats. He has also held positions as the Chief of the FDNS Policy and Program Development Unit, as the Chief of the FDNS EB-5 Division, as Assistant Chief Counsel with U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement, as a Senior Advisor to the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman, and as a District Adjudications Officer with the legacy Immigration & Naturalization Service. In addition, Matt has extensive experience as a private bar attorney. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in French from the Johns Hopkins University and a Juris Doctor from the University of Maine School of Law.

24 Comments

  1. avatar

    How did this security guard end up hired when he has a police record? It looks more like the company that hired him did not run a back ground on him at all or they would have found all of this information. I know one thing, this couples relatives should go after this security company they are the ones that put this crazy in this position to begin with, this company is as responsible for these deaths as the killer and should be held accountable.

  2. avatar
    Dan Streazy on

    It is a shame that we as Americans can’t even agree that people here in our country should be following it’s laws. The U.S. takes more people in legally than any other nation in the world yet others here are not satisfied with that. I believe we should vote as a country on illegal aliens being in this country. The votes should be tracked geographically by region. The regions that are the most concentrated votes for allowing illegals in our country, that is precisely where we should house them. Even if they are high dollar areas the houses should be converted to mini apartments, that should override any home owners association in the name of equality and diversity. Then we will see how the vote turns out.

  3. avatar

    How about the Tsarnaev bombers. Their parents brought them to America as refugees, fleeing religous oppression in Russia. America gave them asylum (permanent resident status=green card). Then the parents moved back voluntarily to Russia (bet they didn’t turn in those green cards). The oldest son, the one that was run over by his younger brother, after the bombing), goes back to Russia to visit with his parents. The Russian FSB spots him hanging out in Chechnya with some Muslim radicals, and they inform the FBI.

    The FBI decides to allow the Tsarnaev boy to return to America, and they tried to recruit him as a source. We now know how that ended up.

    All the FBI had to do was go to their Homeland Security special agent assigned to the Boston JTTF, and get the brother blocked from returning. Then draw up administrative arrest warrants for the family still living in the Boston area. Obviously they obtained their immigration status through fraud.

  4. avatar

    It was reported in MA that the judge gave a sentence of 364 days in prison because if she gave him 365 day, it would have tripped an ice deportation mechanism. It was also reported that he was working as a security officer at the building which he robbed and murdered the couple. How the hell does he get hired as a security officer? This state of MA is so Fed up it is not funny. Crime and drugs are rampant in our cities here – all brought in by the “refugees” as they are called here. I hope the judge that let him go rots in hell.

  5. avatar
    Arland (AJ) Metzger on

    What happen to Americans wanting a Law and Order Country. The ICE officers that said they had no interest in him should be Fired Immediately. They took an oath and are not standing by it. Make America Great Again!

  6. avatar

    Get them O U T !!!!!
    Don’t let them in !??!?!?!?!
    They can only come in if they have a job to come to and the proper paper work
    the same way my family did !!!!

  7. avatar
    Hessie L. Harris on

    Nothing about the political persuasioin of the deceased couple. has been posted. However, it is a fact that many wealthy individuals are sometimes “soft” on illegal immigration because they are not touched by its’ negative effects. Hopefully, this sad incident will make it clear that all American are at risk for harm by illegal alien criminals.

    • avatar

      The families asked if you want to honor them donate to Doctors With Out Borders. Massachusetts is snowflake central. I voted for Trump. I’m in the minority here. The political affiliations of the doctors is of no consequence now.

  8. avatar
    lawrence schreiber on

    First, we need to get, require attention of those in charge. Next those in charge need to be reschooled in job requirements. They, those charge, must be held responsible for ensuring their underlings follow the law as intended or be fired. Good luck America.

  9. avatar

    How dare you slam ICE for this. I know for a fact that they did everything they could to get this guy out but couldn’t because of the way the laws are set up. The DA’s Office and the judge dropped the ball on this one, not ICE.

      • avatar
        Tyrone Shoelaces on

        Maybe not. But it does mean all illegals are criminals. They broke the law to enter the country or are we going to pick and chose which laws are ok to break?

        • avatar
          lawrence schreiber on

          Correct. Liberals always say “but” Then go on to defend their distorted views.

          • avatar

            Lawrence my distorted view gave your family and descendants a land to be free….I have a couple of forefathers and 10 fought in the American Revolution and funded it and died and handicapped for it….you are in my land…so you are the one not only off the boat…..

            I hope that besides paying your taxes you are contributing with inventions and jobs to the Society otherwise you are dead wood….probably you are….

        • avatar

          I agree… the minute they cross that border illegally, they are criminal illegal aliens.. NO NON-Citizen has a right to be in this country.. it’s a privilege to be here, NOT a right..!! We should NOT allow ANY illegal alien to be above the laws.. It sends a wrong message that we don’t care about our own laws and won’t enforce them… We have laws for a reason and they need to be enforced… I’m so sick of our government and idiots who are pro-illegal holding these illegal aliens above the laws and above the citizens…
          ANYONE is welcome to come here to live and work, but DO IT LEGALLY!!! IMO, if they come here ILLEGALLY, they are showing disrespect for the citizens here, disrespect for our country and disrespect with our laws…

          • avatar
            harold r caton on

            I do not know any body that want a criminal to stay in this country, it makes me sick to think we want to protect them and not care of the rest of us

          • avatar

            Harold I do it is called The People all of you are so out of touch…….The People invited them gave them jobs and made your foods……guess what and finding your $SS….you owe them……so wake up and smell the tea!!

          • avatar

            Exactly – Other countries have laws too. However, they enforce them. What is wrong with these people who believe that if you are a foreign nationalist in this country ILLEGALLY, you are above the law. Try to pull this crap in any other country and, if you survive, you will be contacting your families from a jail cell.

        • avatar

          We got the law on the book but mayors and judges want to interpret the law they FEEL is right. Drain the swamp.