ERO Boston arrests Guatemalan national accused of sexually abusing a child

BOSTON — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations arrested Felix Meletz Guarcas, 45, a Guatemalan national accused of sexually assaulting a child in Rhode Island. Officials with ERO Boston’s Providence, Rhode Island, office took Meletz Guarcas into custody Nov. 20, when the Rhode Island Department of Corrections released him despite an active immigration detainer.

“We use immigration detainers as public safety tools,” said ERO Boston acting Field Office Director Patricia H. Hyde. “We asked the Rhode Island Department of Corrections to hold Meletz Guarcas so we could take him into custody in their facility, but he was released to home confinement. Unfortunately, the Department of Corrections doesn’t turn over home confinement releases, so a team of our officers were forced to arrest him in a public parking lot in Cranston, rather than a controlled environment in a custodial setting.”

Meletz Guarcas entered the United States at an unknown location on an unknown date without inspection or parole. The Pawtucket Police Department in Rhode Island arrested him on Feb. 16, 2002, for misdemeanor disorderly conduct and felony assault of police officers and other officials. He was convicted and sentenced to six months of probation four months later in the 6th Division District Court.

The Providence Police Department arrested Meletz Guarcas for one count of first-degree sexual assault on a child and five counts of second-degree sexual assault on a child Sept. 3, 2023, and those charges are pending.

Meletz Guarcas is in ICE custody pending a hearing before an immigration judge.

ERO is one of ICE’s three operational directorates and the principal federal law enforcement authority in charge of domestic immigration enforcement. ERO’s mission is to protect the homeland through the arrest and removal of those who undermine the safety of U.S. communities and the integrity of U.S. immigration laws, and its primary areas of focus are interior enforcement operations, management of the agency’s detained and non-detained populations, and repatriation of noncitizens who have received final orders of removal. ERO’s workforce consists of more than 7,700 law enforcement and non-law enforcement support personnel across 25 domestic field offices and 208 locations nationwide, 30 overseas postings, and multiple temporary duty travel assignments along the border.

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.