ERO Boston arrests Dominican national convicted of child sexual abuse material crime in Massachusetts

BOSTON — Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston apprehended a 25-year-old, unlawfully present Dominican noncitizen convicted of possessing child sexual abuse material in Massachusetts. Officers with ERO Boston arrested Enrique Alberto Ortiz-Brito Sept. 12 in Dorchester.

“Enrique Alberto Ortiz-Brito was convicted for possessing sick and disturbing sexual material,” said ERO Boston Field Office Director Todd M. Lyons. “He posed a significant threat to the children of our Massachusetts community that we could not tolerate. ERO Boston will continue to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing egregious noncitizen offenders.”

U.S. Customs and Border Protection lawfully admitted Ortiz into the United States Dec. 16, 2016, in Boston. However, Ortiz violated the terms of his lawful admission.

ERO lodged an immigration detainer with the Boston Police Department against Ortiz Aug. 31, 2017, following his arrest for possession of child sexual abuse material. Later that day, the Dorchester District Court released Ortiz from custody on a GPS monitoring system pending the outcome of his criminal case.

The Suffolk County Superior Court convicted Ortiz of possession of child pornography. The court sentenced him to a split sentence with a term of one year with 30 days to serve (deemed served) in the house of correction followed by three years of probation with numerous conditions, including sex offender registration.

Officers from ERO Boston arrested Ortiz Sept. 12 in Dorchester and served him with a notice to appear before a Department of Justice immigration judge. He remains in ERO custody.

Detainers are critical public safety tools because they focus enforcement resources on removable noncitizens who have been arrested for criminal activity. Detainers increase the safety of all parties involved — ERO personnel, law enforcement officials, removable noncitizens and the public — by allowing an arrest to be made in a secure and controlled custodial setting as opposed to at-large within the community. Because detainers result in the direct transfer of a noncitizen from state or local custody to ERO custody, they also minimize the potential that an individual will reoffend. Additionally, detainers conserve scarce government resources by allowing ERO to take criminal noncitizens into custody directly rather than expending resources locating these individuals at-large.

ERO conducts removals of individuals without a lawful basis to remain in the United States, including at the order of immigration judges with Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review. The Executive Office for Immigration Review is a separate entity from the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Immigration judges in these courts make decisions based on the merits of each individual case, determining if a noncitizen is subject to a final order of removal or eligible for certain forms of relief from removal.

Members of the public can report crimes and suspicious activity by dialing 866-DHS-2-ICE (866-347-2423) or completing the online tip form.

Learn more about ICE’s mission to increase public safety in our New England communities on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @EROBoston.