CHELMSFORD, Mass. (AP) — A Massachusetts high school student who was arrested by immigration agents on his way to volleyball practice has been released from custody after a judge granted him bond Thursday.

Marcelo Gomes da Silva, 18, who came to the U.S. from Brazil at age 7, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents Saturday. Authorities have said the agents were looking for the Milford High School teenager’s father, who owns the car Gomes da Silva was driving at the time and had parked in a friend’s driveway.

Speaking with members of the media outside the detention center shortly after his release on $2,000 bond, Gomes da Silva described “humiliating” conditions and said his faith in God helped him through his six days of detention.

On his wrist, he wore a bracelet made from the thin sheet of metallic blanket he was given to sleep on the cement floor.

“I’ll always remember this place,” he said. “I’ll always remember how it was.”

His lawyer, Robin Nice, told reporters after the hearing in Chelmsford that his arrest “shouldn’t have happened in the first place. This is all a waste.”

“We disrupted a kid’s life. We just disrupted a community’s life,” Nice said. “These kids should be celebrating graduation and prom, I assume? They should be doing kid stuff, and it is a travesty and a waste of our judicial process to have to go through this.”

She said Gomes da Silva was confined to a room holding 25 to 35 men, many twice his age, most of the time he was detained, with no windows, no time outside and no permission to shower. He was able to brush his teeth twice. Nice said that at one point Gomes da Silva, who is active in his local church, asked for a Bible and was denied.

Gomes da Silva, who said his father taught him to “put other people first,” said many of the men imprisoned with him didn’t speak English and didn’t understand why they were there. He had to inform some of them that they were being deported, and then watched them break down in tears.

“I told every single inmate down there: When I’m out, if I’m the only one who was able to leave that place, I lost,” he said. “I want to do whatever I can to get them as much help as possible. If they have to be deported, so be it. But in the right way, in the right conditions. Because no one down there is treated good.”

He said some days, he was given only crackers to eat, which he shared with the other men. One of his first stops after being released was to McDonald’s to get a soda, chicken nuggets and french fries.’

Not ICE’s target, but detained anyway

U.S. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said earlier this week that ICE officers were targeting a “known public safety threat” and that Gomes da Silva’s father “has a habit of reckless driving at speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour through residential areas.”

“While ICE officers never intended to apprehend Gomes da Silva, he was found to be in the United States illegally and subject to removal proceedings, so officers made the arrest,” she said in a statement.

Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said Monday that “like any local law enforcement officer, if you encounter someone that has a warrant or … he’s here illegally, we will take action on it.”

Gomes da Silva initially entered the country on a visitor visa and was later issued a student visa that has since lapsed, Nice said. She described him as deeply rooted in his community and a dedicated member of both the school marching band and a band at his church.

The immigration judge set a placeholder hearing date for a couple of weeks from Thursday, but it might take place months from that, Nice said.

“We’re optimistic that he’ll have a future in the United States,” she said.

A federal judge considering Gomes da Silva’s request to be released while his immigration case proceeds has given the government until June 16 to respond and ordered that Gomes da Silva not be moved out of Massachusetts without 48 hours’ notice given to the court. The government sought permission Wednesday to move Gomes da Silva to a detention facility in a different New England state, Nice said. A judge quickly denied the request.

A shaken community

“I love my son. We need Marcelo back home. It’s no family without him,” João Paulo Gomes Pereira said in a video released Wednesday. “We love America. Please, bring my son back.”

The video showed the family in the teen’s bedroom. Gomes da Silva’s sister describes watching movies with her brother and enjoying food he cooks for her: “I miss everything about him.”

Students at Milford High staged a walkout Monday to protest his detainment. Other supporters wore white and packed the stands of the high school gymnasium Tuesday night, when the volleyball team dedicated a match to their missing teammate.

Amani Jack, also a recent Milford High graduate, said her classmate’s absence loomed large over the graduation ceremony, where he was supposed to play in the band. She said if she had a chance to speak with the president, she’d ask him to ‘just put yourself in our shoes.’

“He did say he was going to deport criminals,” she said. “Marcelo is not a criminal. He’s a student. I really want him to take a step in our shoes, witnessing this. Try and understand how we feel. We’re just trying to graduate high school.”

Veronica Hernandez, a family advocate from Medford who said she works in a largely Hispanic community where ICE has had an active presence, said cases like Gomes da Silva’s show immigration enforcement is serious about taking “anybody” without legal status, not just those accused of crimes.

“I think seeing that something so simple as a child driving themselves and their friends to volleyball practice at risk struck a chord,” she said.

___

Associated Press reporter Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire, contributed to this story.

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

The spring semester ended for students in early May. But for the best track and field athletes, their season persists well into June.

May 28-31, a group of 13 NC State track and field athletes made the trip to Jacksonville, Florida to compete in the NCAA DI Outdoor Track & Field East Region First Round, with seven qualifying for nationals.

The NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Track and Field and Cross Country Committee selects the top athletes across the nation to compete in the first-round regionals, one taking place in Jacksonville, Florida at the University of North Florida; the other being held in College Station, Texas at Texas A&M University. The setting for the national championship will be Eugene, Oregon.

As Wolfpack fans have come to expect, junior Grace Hartman did Grace Hartman things in both events she ran, first shattering the University of North Florida facility record in the 10,000 meter by a whole 34 seconds with a time of 32:32.80, grabbing her first spot in Eugene. Next, she beat the 5000-meter facility record — set by NC State alumna Katelyn Tuohy in 2023 — securing another berth in the national championship with a time of 15:23.52.

Not too far behind in the 5000 meter, senior Sam Bush qualified for nationals with a mark of 15:28.10 placing sixth. Freshman Bethany Michalak, 16 seconds short of qualification in the event, finished 19th with a time of 15:49.82.

Freshman Mariama Hunt did just enough in the women’s long jump with a mark of 6.11m — securing the 12th and final spot in the women’s long jump championship field.

Sophomore Tyson Adams leapt 7.61m in the men’s long jump, securing a spot in the national championship field with a fifth place finish.

Senior Patrick Tuohy clocked a time of 1:46.60 in the quarterfinals of the 800 meter placing eighth, and earning a trip to Eugene.

In the men’s steeplechase, graduate Brett Gardner made one last push to close out a stellar collegiate career, securing seventh in the 300-meter event with a time of 8:37.63.

Sophomore Angelina Napoleon finished second in the women’s steeplechase with a mark of 9:37.42, rounding out the list of those qualified for the National Championship in Euguene.

Sophomore Xavier Branker and freshman James Coleman both competed in the men’s 400-meter hurdles, placing 35th and 38th respectively with times of 52.04 and 52.63. Both failed to qualify for the quarterfinals.

Senior Luke Thierfelder competed in the men’s javelin event, launching the pointy rod 58.27m to place 43rd in a field of 48 participants.

Bush and sophomore Kate Putman competed in the first round of the women’s 1500 meter. Bush did not qualify for the quarterfinal with a 30th place finish in the first round and a time of 4:18.33. Putman did qualify for the quarterfinal but fell three seconds outside of the top 12, closing the season with a mark of 4:13.58.

Sophomore Jayda Hunter and Hunt competed in the women’s triple jump, both falling short of the qualification mark. Hunt placed 28th with a mark of 12.50m, while Hunter placed 34th with a mark of 12.41m.

The 2025 DI Outdoor Track and Field Championships will take place at Hayward Field June 11-14 in Eugene, Oregon.

Daniel Susann, Assistant Sports Editor

CHELMSFORD, Mass. (AP) — A Massachusetts high school student who was arrested by immigration agents on his way to volleyball practice has been released from custody after a judge granted him bond Thursday.

Marcelo Gomes da Silva, 18, who came to the U.S. from Brazil at age 7, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents Saturday. Authorities have said the agents were looking for the Milford High School teenager’s father, who owns the car Gomes da Silva was driving at the time and had parked in a friend’s driveway.

Speaking with members of the media outside the detention center shortly after his release on $2,000 bond, Gomes da Silva described “humiliating” conditions and said his faith helped him through his six days of detention.

On his wrist, he wore a bracelet made from the thin sheet of metallic blanket he was given to sleep on the cement floor.

“I’ll always remember this place,” he said. “I’ll always remember how it was.”

His lawyer, Robin Nice, told reporters after the hearing in Chelmsford that his arrest “shouldn’t have happened in the first place. This is all a waste.”

“We disrupted a kid’s life. We just disrupted a community’s life,” Nice said. “These kids should be celebrating graduation and prom, I assume? They should be doing kid stuff, and it is a travesty and a waste of our judicial process to have to go through this.”

She said Gomes da Silva was confined to a room holding 25 to 35 men, many twice his age, most of the time he was detained, with no windows, time outside, privacy to use the restroom or permission to shower. Nice said that at one point Gomes da Silva, who is active in his local church, asked for a Bible and was denied.

Gomes da Silva, who said his father taught him to “put other people first,” said many of the men imprisoned with him didn’t speak English and didn’t understand why they were there. He had to inform some of them they were being deported, and then watched them break down in tears.

“I told every single inmate down there: When I’m out, if I’m the only one who was able to leave that place, I lost,” he said. “I want to do whatever I can to get them as much help as possible. If they have to be deported, so be it. But in the right way, in the right conditions. Because no one down there is treated good.”

He said some days, he was given only crackers to eat, which he shared with cellmates. His first stop after being released was for McDonald’s chicken nuggets and french fries.

Not ICE’s target, but detained anyway

U.S. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said earlier this week ICE officers were targeting a “known public safety threat” and Gomes da Silva’s father “has a habit of reckless driving at speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour through residential areas.”

“While ICE officers never intended to apprehend Gomes da Silva, he was found to be in the United States illegally and subject to removal proceedings, so officers made the arrest,” she said in a statement.

Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said Monday that “like any local law enforcement officer, if you encounter someone that has a warrant or … he’s here illegally, we will take action on it.”

Upon his release, Gomes da Silva pushed back on ICE’s characterizations of his father: “Everything I got was from my dad. He’s a good person. He never did anything wrong.”

When he was able to call his parents during his detainment, Gomes da Silva said his father sobbed and told him the family was scared to leave the house.

Gomes da Silva initially entered the country on a visitor visa and was later issued a student visa that has since lapsed, Nice said. He told reporters he didn’t know his immigration status until he was arrested.

He said an officer asked him, “Do you know why you were arrested?” He said no.

“I told her, ma’am, I was 7 years old. I don’t know nothing about that stuff,” he recalled. “I don’t understand how it works.”

Nice described him as deeply rooted in his community and a dedicated member of both the school marching band and a band at his church.

The immigration judge set a placeholder hearing date for a couple of weeks from Thursday, but it might take place months from that, Nice said.

“We’re optimistic that he’ll have a future in the United States,” she said.

A shaken community

“I love my son. We need Marcelo back home. It’s no family without him,” João Paulo Gomes Pereira said in a video released Wednesday. “We love America. Please, bring my son back.”

The video showed the family in the teen’s bedroom. Gomes da Silva’s sister describes enjoying watching movies with her brother and the food he cooks for her: “I miss everything about him.”

Students at Milford High staged a walkout Monday to protest his detainment. Other supporters packed the stands of the high school gymnasium Tuesday night, when the volleyball team dedicated a match to their missing teammate.

Amani Jack, a recent Milford High graduate, said her classmate’s absence loomed large over the graduation ceremony, where he was supposed to play in the band. She said if she had a chance to speak with the president, she’d ask him to “put yourself in our shoes.”

“He did say he was going to deport criminals,” she said. “Marcelo is not a criminal. He’s a student. I really want him to take a step in our shoes, witnessing this. Try and understand how we feel. We’re just trying to graduate high school.”

Veronica Hernandez, a family advocate from Medford who said she works in a largely Hispanic community where ICE has had an active presence, said cases like Gomes da Silva’s show immigration enforcement is serious about taking “anybody” without legal status, not just those accused of crimes.

“I think seeing that something so simple as a child driving themselves and their friends to volleyball practice at risk struck a chord,” she said.

___

Associated Press reporter Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire, contributed to this story.

Boston Globe via Getty Images

Boston Globe via Getty Images

Not ICE’s target, but detained anyway

A shaken community

His Eminence Elder Metropolitan Demetrios (Kommatas) of Princes’ Islands, Primate and Exarch of Propontis, was awarded the title of doctor honoris causa of the Department of Theology. The awarding ceremony took place on Thursday, 29 May 2025, at 19:00, at the Great Hall of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens.

In attendance at the ceremony were His Beatitude Archbishop Ieronymos II of Athens and All Greece; His Eminence Metropolitan Meliton of Philadelphia—representing His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I; the Deputy Ministers of Education, Religious Affairs, and Sports, Mr Nikolaos Papaioannou—representing the Government—and Mr Kostas Vlasis; the former Deputy Prime Minister of the Greek Government, Mr Evaggelos Venizelos; the Members of Parliament Manos Konsolas, Zetta Makri, and Maximos Charakopoulos; the Shadow Secretary of State for Development and Investment at PASOK-Movement for Change—representing the Leader of the Opposition—Professor Konstantinos Gatsios; the Great Benefactor and doctor honoris causa of the University of Athens, Mr Athanasios Martinos; Members of the Academy of Athens; the Greek Consul General in Istanbul, Ambassador Konstantinos Koutras; Bishops and Priests; the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Hellenic Development Bank and former Deputy Minister of Finance, Mr George Zavvos; the Archon Grand Logothetis of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, Mr Theodore Angelopoulos; Emeritus Professors; Members of the University’s Administration Council; the Vice-Rector for Administrative Affairs, Student Welfare, and Lifelong Learning, Professor Christos Karagiannis; Deans of Schools; Chairs of Departments; Members of the University Senate; and numerous members of faculty.

Addressing the honouree was the Rector of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Professor Gerasimos Siasos.

Immediately afterwards, Professor at the Department of Theology of the NKUA’s School of Theology, His Eminence Chrysostomos, Metropolitan of Messinia, presented the work and personality of the honouree.

This was followed by the awarding ceremony.

-The Chair of the Department of Theology of the NKUA’s School of Theology, Professor Dimitrios Moschos, read the Department’s Resolution, the Award, and the Honorary Diploma.

– Next, the Dean of the School of Theology, Professor Emmanouil Karageorgoudis, presented the honouree with the University’s epitoge.

The ceremony closed with His Eminence Elder Metropolitan Demetrios (Kommatas) of Princes’ Islands, Primate and Exarch of Propontis, delivering a speech entitled ‘Aspects of the Sleepless Ministry of the Great Church of Christ’.

In his address to the honouree, the Rector of the University of Athens, Professor Gerasimos Siasos, said, among other things, the following: ‘The decision by the University Senate expresses profound respect for an eminent Hierarch, born from the very heart of the Mother Church of Constantinople, who has devoted over four decades of uninterrupted ministry to the Ecumenical Throne, Orthodoxy, and the Greek diaspora.

The honouree was born in the Constantinopolitan district of Tatavla in 1952. A graduate of the Great School of the Genos and among the last students to attend the Halki Seminary before its closure in 1971, he completed his studies at the Department of Pastoral Theology of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in 1975 and then went on to further his theological education at Oak Hill College in London, UK.

His Eminence has forged his ecclesiastical path alongside the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the Phanar, and the Greek Orthodox community of Istanbul. He was ordained a deacon in 1974 and a year later joined the Patriarchal Court.

In 1990, he was unanimously elected Metropolitan of Sevasteia and undertook a senior role as Director of the Private Patriarchal Office, working closely with His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I. Actively involved in Synodal bodies and Church missions, he has been a tireless servant of unity, ministry, and the institutional witness of the Throne.

In 2018, the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate unanimously elected him Metropolitan of Princes’ Islands and, following the commendation of His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, bestowed upon him the honorary title of Elder of the Ecumenical Throne.

At his enthronement, the Ecumenical Patriarch spoke movingly, acknowledging him as the Prelate who “provides a God-pleasing pastoral ministry and is now crowned with the dignity and honour of an Elder”.

The Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Church of Greece have long-standing, unbreakable ties with the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. This bond is not merely historical—it is rather vibrant and spiritual. And today, in your person, through your conferment as honorary doctor, the University of Athens, the oldest and largest Institution of Higher Education in Greece, honours the Phanar and, together with it, the ideals that Bartholomew I, Patriarch of the Genos and doctor honoris causa of all of our Schools and Departments, upholds high as a shining beacon’.

Photos: Dimitris Konstantinidis