A 14-year-old Brazilian girl detained by ICE Tuesday outside a Marlborough church was released Thursday and reunited with her family after a federal judge ordered her return to Massachusetts. Agents handed the teen over to her aunt at the JFK Federal Building in Boston, according to her attorney, Andrew Lattarulo. He said he was alerted to the case by U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley's office. The girl was one of three people U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained outside the church. "Her rights were 100% violated," said Lattarulo. Agents detained a 14-year-old girl in Marlborough on Tuesday, and elected officials are calling for her return to Massachusetts. He said he quickly filed a habeas corpus petition in federal court to stop ICE from transferring her out of state. A judge ordered her returned to Massachusetts after she had been moved to New York. "The judge reacted very quickly, and he agreed that the government wasn't providing good answers for why you would detain a child and, in the middle of the night, transfer her to New York, so he ordered the immediate transfer back," he said. The Department of Homeland Security disputed the characterization of the incident, saying ICE did not arrest the girl, but rescued her from suspected gang members. The agency said she was placed in the custody of Health and Human Services after officials verified she had no family ties to the two men detained with her. Lattarulo questioned that explanation. "Now they say they're rescuing her from gang members, but why hold her for 10 hours and then move her to New York to bring her back? Something's fishy there," he said. Political tensions are heightened over the detainment of a teenage girl in Marlborough. Pressley said community members reported the case to a group of activists, who then contacted her office. She said cases like this are not unique. "Their actions are very contradictory," she said. A Marshall Project analysis found the daily number of children in ICE detention jumped sixfold. Information from the Deportation Data Project showed an average of 170 minors were detained per day, up from 25 the previous year. Pressley said children detained by immigration authorities face lasting trauma. "They're forever changed by the traumatic disruption that they have experienced that never should've happened in the first place," she said. Lattarulo said the teen's mother has died and her father is missing. He said she will likely qualify for a special immigrant visa. Patriot 2.0 was in violation of US Immigration law,” the statement continued. “The majority of those had committed serious crimes in the United States or in their native countries. Most were released due to local and state jurisdictions refusing to cooperate with ICE.” Read the full statement from ICE Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis: ICE did NOT arrest a 14-year-old girl—our officers RESCUED her from suspected gang members.On March 11, ICE conducted a targeted operation to arrest Igor Jose Cordeiro Ferreira, 28, and Lucas Da Silva Senes De Almeida, 25, two illegal aliens from Brazil and suspected Primeiro Comando da Massachusetts gang members. With the men was a 14-year-old girl who did not identify Cordeiro Ferreira or DeAlmeida as legal guardians. Upon further investigation, special agents confirmed that the 14-year-old girl had no familial relationship to either individual. Based on this information and to ensure the safety and security of the minor, she was placed in the custody of Health and Human Services, Office of Refugee Resettlement within hours of the initial encounter. As standard protocol, she will remain in ORR custody pending the identification of legal guardians.The vehicle the illegal aliens were in when agents made the arrest was connected to an alleged attempted home invasion in Walpole, Massachusetts earlier this month.Cordeiro Ferreira illegally entered the United States in 2022. Following an arrest by U.S. Border Patrol in the San Diego sector, he was released on his own recognizance after as a result of the Biden administration's open-border policies. Da Silva Senes De Almeida did not depart in 2024 as required by the terms of his visa. More stories about ICE