According to ICE, a 26-year-old Honduran national charged with first-degree sexual assault against a minor under 13 and illegal sexual contact with a minor was released from the Hartford Correctional Center in Connecticut in February, despite an ICE detainer.
He had been initially released into the U.S. in 2013 after arrest by Border Patrol.
In September 2023, local police in New Britain, Connecticut arrested and charged him with the sex crimes.
ICE issued an October detainer requesting notification before his release and to hold him for transfer to ICE custody, but the jail released him.
ICE officers apprehended him in April, nearly two months later.
ICE criticized such “noncooperative jurisdictions” for posing risks to communities by releasing alleged criminal predators.
“This is a disturbing example of how noncooperative jurisdictions can pose a significant threat to communities in our region,” ERO Boston Field Office Director Todd Lyons stated. “Despite the presence of an immigration detainer, local authorities released an alleged sexual predator onto the streets of a Connecticut neighborhood.”
While the Biden administration has urged cooperation on handing over criminal undocumented immigrants, some cities have sanctuary policies limiting such cooperation.
“We welcome local law enforcement’s support and cooperation in apprehending and removing individuals who pose a risk to national security or public safety,” a White House spokesperson stated. “When a local jurisdiction has information about an individual who could pose a threat to public safety, we want them to share that information with ICE.”
