A Guatemalan illegal immigrant charged with rape and multiple other sex crimes in Massachusetts was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers after his release from state custody, federal officials said Tuesday.
ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations officers in Boston arrested Rocael Ordonez-Cruz, 23, on July 21 at the Middlesex County House of Correction in Billerica, Massachusetts, according to the agency.
ICE said Ordonez-Cruz entered the United States illegally at an unknown location and time without being inspected, admitted or paroled by a U.S. immigration official.
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The Arlington, Massachusetts, Police Department arrested Ordonez-Cruz on June 25, according to ICE.
Local authorities charged Ordonez-Cruz with rape and assault to rape.
He also faces charges of indecent assault and battery on a person aged 14 or older, as well as indecent exposure, according to the agency.
“Rocael Ordonez-Cruz has not only displayed a blatant disregard for our laws by illegally entering this United States and later allegedly sexually assaulting our residents, he has also proven to be a threat to our neighborhoods,” acting Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston Field Office Director David Wesling said.
“The arrest of this alleged sex offender from the streets of Massachusetts shows our officers’ dedication to the safety and security of our New England communities. We will not stop finding and arresting dangerous criminal alien offenders,” he added.
After his release from state custody, ICE officers arrested Ordonez-Cruz and served him with a notice to appear before a Justice Department immigration judge.
The notice to appear initiates removal proceedings before an immigration judge.
Ordonez-Cruz will remain in ICE custody pending the outcome of those proceedings, according to the agency.
Fox News Digital reached out to ICE for clarification regarding the circumstances of Ordonez-Cruz’s arrest but did not immediately receive a response.
