An undocumented immigrant arrested last month at a state-operated shelter in Revere, who was allegedly found with an AR-15 and $1 million worth of fentanyl, was not officially enrolled in the emergency assistance program but was housed with someone who was, Governor Maura Healey stated on Tuesday.
Following her directive for a review of all emergency shelter units, Healey reported that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had taken Leonardo Andujar Sanchez, an undocumented immigrant from the Dominican Republic, into custody. Federal officials claim he unlawfully entered the United States within the past year at an unidentified date and location.
Healey confirmed that Sanchez did not apply for the emergency assistance shelter, which was established under a 1980s law to provide temporary housing for homeless pregnant women and families with children.
“No, he didn’t apply. That’s our understanding. We will learn more through this investigation,” Healey told reporters after an event at the Boston Public Library in Copley Square. “… This is under criminal investigation, so I want to be cautious about what I say.”
The first-term Democrat did not disclose the identity of the individual who was benefiting from state shelter services with whom Sanchez was staying, directing questions to the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, which has partial oversight of the system.
A representative from the agency did not promptly respond to the Herald’s inquiries regarding the individual with whom Sanchez was staying and the security measures in place at the Quality Inn in Revere, where his arrest occurred last month.
For the last year and a half, the Healey administration has maintained that only migrants lawfully admitted into the U.S. by federal authorities are eligible for state-funded shelter services. Approximately half of the families within the shelter system are migrants, while the remainder are residents of Massachusetts, according to the administration.
Sanchez faces a total of 11 charges related to his arrest, including 10 connected to firearms and one charge accusing him of possessing 4.9 kilograms (nearly 11 pounds) of fentanyl, as indicated by court documents. His privately retained lawyer previously stated that these charges are “just allegations.”
“We are going to contest this case vigorously and will hold the Commonwealth to the burden of proving every aspect of every charge beyond a reasonable doubt,” Attorney John Benzan told the Herald last week.
Benzan did not immediately respond to a Herald inquiry on Tuesday.
According to Healey, Sanchez was removed from the shelter following his arrest and is currently in ICE custody. A spokesperson for the federal agency has not yet confirmed Sanchez’s status in custody.
ICE officials reported that Sanchez was arrested on December 27 and was arraigned shortly thereafter in Chelsea District Court on multiple charges, including illegal possession of a firearm and a large capacity feeding device, possession of a firearm during a felony, and trafficking in over 200 grams of heroin, morphine, opium, or fentanyl.
“During a Spanish-language interview, ERO officers determined that Andujar unlawfully entered the U.S. on an unknown date at an unknown location sometime within the past year,” ICE officials noted in a statement last week referring to the agency’s Enforcement and Removal Operations unit in Boston.
Sanchez’s arrest prompted Healey to order an inspection of all state-run shelter units and a comprehensive review of the intake process to ascertain if further measures could be implemented to deter criminal activity.
A spokesperson for Healey announced that inspections will be conducted by the staff members of various providers working in the shelters “in accordance with applicable shelter rules.”
Personnel will be expected to identify any “non-compliance with shelter regulations, signs of criminal activity, or any significant health or safety concerns,” the spokesperson added.
Eliot Community Human Services, based in Lexington, is the service provider for the Revere shelter, as noted by the state’s housing agency. The organization’s president and CEO, Melinda Matthews, has not yet responded to an email inquiry from the Herald.
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