Update 4:35 p.m.: See story Great Barrington man in his 20s, reportedly a Mexican national, apprehended by ICE agents at this link.
Update 3:15 p.m.: The following videos and photos were submitted by a reader:
Update 2:45 p.m.: The following video was sent to The Berkshire Edge by Ben Elliott:
Update 1 p.m.: The Berkshire Edge spoke with Selectboard member Ben Elliott who works at The Triplex as its creative director.
Elliott told The Berkshire Edge that he was on his way into his office at The Triplex building after 9 a.m.
The Triplex is located behind The Barrington House.
“There was a crowd gathered in the parking lot in front of the Barrington House entrance, and I was quickly informed that ICE was on the ground [at the building],” Elliott said. “They were on the top floor of the Barrington House in the residential [part of the building]. I was there when they brought a man out.”
Elliott said that numerous heavily armed officers brought at least two men from the building.
“There were numerous heavily armed officers, not wearing any badges [or identification],” Elliott said. “There was no government identification other than just the word “police” [on their uniforms], but no actual specific identification of what department or who they were with. Some of the [witnesses] confirmed that it was a mix of US Marshals and ICE agents.”
Elliott said that he witnessed a heavily armored SWAT vehicle and an SUV.
“The officers, except for one officer leading the operation, all had their faces covered,” he said. They were all carrying heavy assault weapons.”
Elliott said that at least two people were taken from the Barrington House by ICE agents.
Update 11 a.m.: According to witnesses who contacted The Berkshire Edge, about a dozen ICE agents went into the Barrington House building and took at least one person into custody. The following videos were sent by readers of The Berkshire Edge:
Great Barrington — This morning, residents reported seeing agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) at the parking lot of the Barrington House.
Videos posted on Facebook show agents walking into and out of the building as residents filmed the agents.
Police Chief Paul Storti said that he did not have any details of the incident, but he did say that he received calls from residents about the sightings of federal agents.
However, after The Berkshire Edge conducted this interview, Josh Landes from WAMC posted that “ICE contacted the Great Barrington Police Department about their plans to come to town early Tuesday morning, but did not disclose their plans in the community.”
The Berkshire Edge will publish further updates as more information comes in.
Anyone with information about the incident can contact Managing Editor Shaw Israel Izikson at sizikson@theberkshireedge.com
