Second Person Arrested By ICE On Nantucket Identified As Brazilian Man Previously Charged With Indecent Assault & Battery

Another individual who was taken into custody by federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents last week on Nantucket was identified Tuesday as Gean Do Amaral Belafronte, who had previously been arrested by Nantucket Police and charged with indecent assault and battery on a person 14 years or older.

The alleged indecent assault took place on Nantucket back on April 13, 2021, and an arraignment for Belafronte had been scheduled for June 9, 2021 following his arrest. But Belafronte, a 30-year-old Brazilian noncitizen, never appeared for the arraignment and a warrant was issued for his arrest by former Nantucket District Court Judge Thomas S. Barrett.

According to ICE, Belafronte had lawfully entered the United States on Oct 8, 2018 but violated the terms of his admission into the country. The agency said Tuesday that he left the United States voluntarily on April 18, 2021 - five days after the alleged indecent assault on Nantucket took place and was reported to police.

But according to ICE, Belafronte at some point returned and unlawfully reentered the United States on an unknown date and at an unknown location. Then on Tuesday, March 12, 2024, Belafronte was taken into custody on the island by Nantucket Police on a warrant arrest. At 3 p.m. that afternoon, he was arraigned on the indecent assault and battery charge, almost three years later from when it allegedly took place.

Nantucket District Court released Belafronte on $500 cash bail or a $5,000 surety bond.

According to the police report, on April 13, 2021, Belafronte walked towards the alleged victim, grabbed her with two hands, brought her to the ground, pinned her hands down over her head while his body was on top of her and stated "I will rape you" as he licked her lips with his tongue while she kept her mouth closed. The incident allegedly occurred at a Heather Lane property. The age of the alleged victim was not disclosed in the police statement provided to the court.

“Gean Do Amaral Belafronte unlawfully entered the United States, made his way to Nantucket, and allegedly sexually assaulted one of our residents,” said Todd M. Lyons, the director of the Boston field office for ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO). “We have been consistent in our promise to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing egregious noncitizen offenders. This is not a hollow expression; it is a sincere promise to the residents of our New England communities.”

ICE agents arrested Belafronte on Wednesday, Sept. 11 on Nantucket  and served him with a notice to appear before a Department of Justice immigration judge. He remains in federal custody.

On Monday, another person who was arrested by ICE agents on Nantucket last week was identified by the agency as a 28-year-old Salvadoran national who had recently been charged with sex crimes against a child on the island. It is not yet known how many individuals were arrested by ICE during the multi-day operation on Nantucket.