Federal Immigration Authorities Apprehend Guatemalan Illegal Immigrant Charged With Child Sex Crimes

Federal authorities apprehended a 33-year-old Guatemalan illegal immigrant accused of numerous crimes, including sex offenses against minors in Massachusetts, on March 28 near his home in Lynn.

 “This unlawfully present Guatemalan national has been charged with sex crimes against Massachusetts children,” said Todd Lyons, Boston field office director of Enforcement Removal Operations of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “His very presence in our community represents a dire threat to our residents.”

The Guatemalan national entered the United States illegally at an unspecified time and location without inspection, admission, or parole by a U.S. immigration official, according to federal authorities.

In March 2022, police in Lynn arrested the man, who was then arraigned in Lynn District Court on charges of assault and battery on a household member and strangulation/suffocation. Later, on March 30, 2022, the court arraigned the illegal immigrant on a charge of reckless endangerment of a child. However, all charges against the individual were dismissed by the Lynn District Court on February 14, 2023.

Then, on June 26, 2023, the Guatemalan national was arraigned in East Boston District Court on charges of compulsory insurance violation, obscured or concealed number plate, and forgery. These charges were also dismissed on the same day.

In November 2023, he faced multiple charges including indecent assault and battery on a child under 14, assault to rape a child, assault and battery on a child with injury, and intimidation. Despite arraignment on November 8 and November 15, 2023, the indictments for superior court arraignment were dismissed by the Lynn District Court on February 27, 2024.

Massachusetts Republican Party Chair Amy Carnevale slammed the courts that previously set this man free.

“The tragic outcome whereby criminal illegal immigrants are let loose to reoffend stems from the Healey-Driscoll Administration ‘Things will happen’ approach to migrant and illegal immigrant crimes in the Commonwealth,” Carnevale said in a press release from the Massachusetts Republican Party. “Massachusetts has become a magnet for illegal immigrants facing criminal charges because of our sanctuary city policies that allow these criminals  to evade arrest while victims continue to be put at risk.”

“The Healey-Driscoll Administration loves to blame the Federal Government for the Commonwealth’s immigration issues, yet the Administration refuses to collaborate with federal authorities to detain immigrants accused of heinous crimes and transfer these criminals over,” she added. “Municipalities with sanctuary policies are jeopardizing their communities, and residents in these areas should seriously consider recent events to understand the actual repercussions of these policies.”

Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston lodged an arrest warrant and immigration detainer against the individual on November 20, 2023, with the Essex County Correctional Facility in Middleton.

The man was arraigned February 26, 2024, in Essex Superior Court on multiple counts, including indecent assault and battery on a child under 14, rape of a child, assault and battery, and intimidation of a witness.

After the Essex County Correctional Facility declined to honor an immigration detainer issued by Enforcement and Removal Operations and released the man, deportation officers arrested him on Thursday, March 28 near his home in Lynn. He was served with a notice to appear before a U.S. Department of Justice immigration judge and will remain in federal custody pending removal proceedings, according to federal authorities.