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Allston Car Wash workers describe inhumane ICE detention during meeting with Pressley

“The air mattress was half deflated, and you could feel the bars from the bed in your back. You put your hand to the wall, and there was water seeping through.”

Rep. Ayanna Pressley stood beside community members at a press conference Monday night. Jessica Rinaldi/The Boston Globe

By Molly Farrar

December 9, 2025

3 minutes to read

The Allston Car Wash workers who were detained at work by immigration officials last month described experiencing inhumane conditions while in ICE custody during a meeting with Rep. Ayanna Pressley Monday night.

“A senior denied their medication, a young woman unable to shower or eat for days, people forced to endure harsh conditions in the lobby of a processing facility, not designed or equipped for living,” Pressley said.

Nearly two dozen U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested nine employees at the car wash without giving them an opportunity to retrieve documents that could have proven they are allowed to work in the U.S., a manager said previously. The people detained ranged in age from a teenager to a 67-year-old man who recently lost his wife to cancer.

Seven of the nine employees have been released from custody, their lawyer Todd Pomereau told Boston.com. Before a press conference, five of the workers shared their stories at a community discussion.

“It was a tearjerker,” Pomerleau said about the meeting. His clients were deprived of access to phone calls, medicine, and adequate food, he said.

One said he was treated like a dog, but “a lot of people treat their pets a hell of a lot better than my clients were treated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement,” Pomerleau said.

Dairo Preciado, 67, spoke in Spanish at the conference, The Boston Globe reported. He worked at the car wash for 26 years.

“With the terrible cold, I couldn’t even sleep while I was there,” he said, per the Globe. “The air mattress was half deflated, and you could feel the bars from the bed in your back. You put your hand to the wall, and there was water seeping through.”

Another worker, who is diabetic, was fed donuts and crackers, which is still affecting her body, and another was separated from her daughter, Pomerleau said.

Several of the Allston Car Wash workers detained by ICE last month spoke about their experiences in detention during a community meeting Monday night. *(Jessica Rinaldi/The Boston Globe)* *– (Jessica Rinaldi/The Boston Globe)*

‘Deeply concerning’: Pressley holds press conference after workers speak

After the discussion and a press conference Monday evening, Pressley called the workers’ stories of detention “deeply alarming.” She was joined by Boston City Councilor Liz Breadon, the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, LUCE, and other advocates.

“This was unlawful, unconscionable and unconstitutional,” Pressley said during the press conference. “This took a coordinated community response to ensure that these workers were granted their constitutional right to due process.”

None of the workers have a criminal record. One of the workers was transferred to Texas, which added complications to her case, said Pomerleau, whose law firm founded the nonprofit legal clinic Mass Deportation Defense.

“They were all traumatized by the experience, yet tremendously thankful for the outpouring of community support from a bunch of strangers that came together to help them deal with this abuse of government immigration enforcement action,” Pomereau said after the meeting.

Pressley said, after she learned of the raid, she worked immediately to connect the workers with legal counsel. Since then, the community has organized vigils, marches, and protests, raising $70,000 to support the car wash workers and their families.

A Boston University student took credit for the raid, which the family-owned car wash called “reckless and distressing.” Pomereau said his clients don’t hold hatred or animosity toward the student, who considers London, England his hometown.

“One of them said that she prayed for him,” Pomerleau said. “She said he doesn’t know us. He doesn’t know the kind of people we are. They would have all offered him a ride to school, given him a meal if he needed it.”