ICE arrests mother of Karoline Leavitt's nephew

Nov. 26 (UPI) -- The mother of White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt's nephew was arrested by immigration officials during enforcement actions in Massachusetts.

The woman, Bruna Ferreira, 33, was leaving her home in Revere, Mass., in north Boston, to pick up her son from school when Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents descended on her car, asked for identification -- which she did not have on her -- and arrested her, the Boston Globe reported.

The Department of Homeland Security confirmed to ABC and The Hill that Ferreira, who identified Leavitt as her son's aunt while being arrested, had been detained by ICE earlier this month and that the agency is in the process of deporting her.

Karoline Leavitt's brother, Michael Leavitt, shares an 11-year-old son with Ferreira and also confirmed that she had been arrested.

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Ferreira's sister, Graziela Dos Santos, told The Globe that they have been separated for 10 years and share custody of their son, with Michael Leavitt noting to WBUR that the child lives primarily with him and his wife in New Hampshire.

Dos Santos said Ferreira drives to and from New Hampshire to spend time with her son, as on the day she was arrested, cooking for him, reading, praying and spending time together as often as she can.

In a statement, Michael Leavitt said that their son had not spoken with his mother since she was detained, and that his "only concern has been the safety, well-being and privacy of [his] son."

According to a GoFundMe that Dos Santos started to raise money for her sisters' legal costs, Ferreira was brought to the United States by her parents as a child on a visa and that she previously maintained her legal status through the DACA program, which has been canceled by the Trump administration.

The Department of Homeland Security has described her, however, as "a criminal illegal alien from Brazil" with a previous arrest for battery, a DHS spokesperson told ABC.

"She entered the U.S. on a B2 tourist visa that required her to depart the U.S. by June 6, 1999," the spokesperson said. "She is currently at the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center and is in removal proceedings."

Dos Santos said that their parents emigrated from Brazil in late 1998 with Ferreira, and that she and their brother were born in the U.S.

Ferreira entered the country legally and is in the process of obtaining a green card, according to her attorney, Todd Pomerlau, who added that she has "no criminal record whatsoever."

Although the White House has not commented officially on the arrest, a source told The Hill that Karoline Leavitt has not spoken to Ferreira in years since the relationship with her brother ended.

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