The ICE thugs have arrived in Milford.

A member of the Milford High School boys' volleyball team (not pictured above) was detained by ICE agents on Saturday. (Milford Daily News photo)

You would have to be living under a rock to not have read or heard about how agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (known popularly as ICE) have been unleashed across the nation to enforce President Donald Trump's campaign promise to rid the country of individuals that are living here illegally, or are criminals at large, or whatever excuse they can make to justify their Gestapo-like tactics.

These so-called officers of the law are often wearing plain clothes or military-style fatigues, are heavily armed to the point of excess and are masked to hide their identities. They operate without any regard for due process, which is supposed to be guaranteed to anyone in the country by the Constitution of the United States (not just American citizens as some claim). They swoop down upon their prey and spirit individuals away to unknown destinations regardless of age, gender, or proof of American citizenship or legal residency status -- and if you don't understand how closely that parallels Nazi Germany's persecution of European Jews in the 1930s and 1940s, you've clearly never read a history book.

With all that said, the horror came to the Hockomock League in recent days.

A member of the Milford High School boys' volleyball team was detained by ICE officers while he and teammates drove to practice on Saturday morning, according to multiple news reports.

Responding to several requests for information, Milford school officials would not release the name of the athlete, only to confirm that he is an 18-year-old member of the junior class. Boston TV station WCVB revealed that the first name of the athlete was "Marcello," but said in its reporting that students interviewed for the report would not offer his last name.

The website HockomockSports.com, which provides extensive coverage of all sports played by the league's 12 member schools, runs full rosters of all of those teams in tandem with their season schedules. Under Milford's entry in boys' volleyball, there is one athlete with the first name of "Marcelo." As I am not up-to-date with the current legality of releasing such information publicly without confirmation, I will note simply that the athlete named Marcelo is a member of the junior class and wears No. 10 on his uniform. Anyone may find further information by calling up the website's main menu, clicking on Schedules, locating the Milford boys' volleyball schedule and then scrolling down to the roster.

The Worcester Telegram and Gazette did reveal what it believes to be the student's full name. The newspaper's reporting said the student is originally from Brazil, and was first sent to a facility in Burlington and then transferred to a detention facility in Plymouth.

ICE agents often hide their faces while on the job.

Reports on the Boston Globe's website as well as WCVB's profiled the athlete in question as a "model citizen" that had lived in the United States since he was 5. They said he is enrolled in honors classes, is an "exceptional musician" and member of the high school marching band, and even assisted in coaching the girls' volleyball team during its fall season.

Milford boys' coach Andrew Mainini said that when the athletes driving to practice with the detained student did not arrive at the school for a 7:45 a.m. practice, he assumed they had just overslept -- until he received a text from one of them explaining that the group had been stopped by ICE agents.

"Our athlete, who was detained, may be the friendliest person in the school," Mainini told WCVB. "Every day, no matter how he felt, he always had a smile on his face. He was not only happy himself, he made other people smile."

Milford High's graduation ceremonies were this morning. Later in the day, students and community members gathered at the town hall to protest the student's detention.

"I can't imagine any issues with authorities," Mainini told the Telegram and Gazette. "He's an innocent kid who is heavily involved in his church and has no disciplinary issues in school. He's a truly innocent young person."

Milford's volleyball team tied Taunton for the Hockomock League title this year, and took a 12-9 overall record in the MIAA Division 1 tournament as the No. 22 seed in the playoffs. Milford defeated No. 11 Chelmsford, 3-1, in the opening round, and is scheduled for a rematch with No. 3 Taunton in the Round of 16 at 6 p.m. Tuesday in Taunton. Mainini said that the game will go on as scheduled.

MARK FARINELLA, 71, is a second-generation American whose grandparents emigrated to this country at the start of the 20th century, and who never believed he would see these totalitarian tactics being used within the United States during his lifetime. Contact him at theownersbox2020@gmail.com