In June, Vidal and three fellow Brazilian military police officers were convicted of 11 murders in 2015 that became known as the “Curio Massacre,” named for the neighborhood in which they took place. The former officers also were convicted on charges of attempted murder and torture, officials said.

Tried in absentia, Vidal was sentenced to nearly 276 years in prison by a criminal court in the state of Ceara, Brazil. Interpol, the international criminal police organization, issued a “Red Notice” about Vidal, a request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and arrest someone pending extradition, surrender or other legal action.

On Monday, authorities with ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations office in Boston captured Vidal in Rye, taking him into custody without a struggle, officials said. He will be held in federal ICE custody pending a hearing before a federal immigration judge.

Rye Police Chief Kevin Walsh was there when Vidal was taken into custody. Federal authorities had given him a heads-up about 24 hours earlier and asked for his department’s support, he said.

Vidal was working as a construction contractor at a property in town, and he was arrested there first thing Monday morning, Walsh said. Rye police shut down some roads during the federal operation for safety reasons, he said.

Vidal was not living on the Seacoast, “but he was living somewhere in New Hampshire,” Walsh said. Authorities believe he’s been in this country for several years, he said.

While the arrest of an internationally wanted fugitive will come as a shock to many, Walsh said, in some ways it’s not surprising.

“When someone does something like that, they are going to go to a location where they can … go unnoticed,” he said. “New Hampshire’s a relatively small area. You can merge in and go relatively unnoticed.”

Walsh said his officers were standing by to help during the arrest in case of trouble, but the arrest went smoothly.

“You have to be careful when you deal with people like that,” he said. “They have nothing to lose.”

Walsh was impressed with the federal agents who carried out the operation.

“It was a well planned-out operation,” he said. “We pride ourselves on our relationship with our federal partners, that we can be trusted with information. And we’re honored that we were given the opportunity to help.”

What struck him about Vidal when he saw him? “That he’s dangerous,” the chief said. “No community wants somebody like that here.”

“Everybody says Rye is small; nothing ever happens here,” he said.

But he said, “That’s why people come here. We work really hard to make sure the community stays safe, and we relied on our federal partners to help us with that.”

swickham@union leader.com