ERO Boston arrests Guatemalan national charged with sex crime against Rhode Island minor

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston apprehended an unlawfully present Guatemalan national accused of sexually abusing a Rhode Island minor. Deportation officers from ERO Boston arrested the 25-year-old Guatemalan noncitizen during a targeted enforcement operation July 22 in Providence.

“This Guatemalan noncitizen will have his day in court, but he stands accused of some serious and disturbing crimes,” said ERO Boston Field Office Director Todd M. Lyons. “We owe it to the children of our communities to apprehend and remove noncitizen sex offenders from their neighborhoods. ERO Boston will continue to prioritize public safety in order to keep such criminals away from our New England residents.”

The U.S. Border Patrol arrested the Guatemalan noncitizen Aug. 16, 2016, after he unlawfully entered the United States near Antelope Wells, New Mexico. Border Patrol officials served the Guatemalan national with a notice to appear before a Department of Justice immigration judge.

The Providence Police Department arrested the Guatemalan noncitizen Feb. 10, 2022, and charged him with first-degree child molestation sexual assault.

The Providence/Bristol Superior Court issued a warrant for the Guatemalan noncitizen’s arrest July 16, 2024. Later that day, the noncitizen turned himself in to the court. He posted bond the same day.

Deportation officers from ERO Boston’s Providence field office arrested him during a targeted enforcement operation July 22 in Providence and served him with a notice of custody determination. He remains in ERO custody.

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 with information regarding noncitizen offenders can report crimes or suspicious activity by dialing the ICE Tip Line at 866-DHS-2-ICE (866-347-2423) or completing the online tip form.

As one of ICE’s three operational directorates, ERO is 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.

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