ICE arrests fugitive child sexual predator during targeted enforcement operation in Arizona
PHOENIX – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) arrested a dangerous illegal alien Friday who was wanted in Colorado on felony charges stemming from a sexual assault on a child. On July 23, the Summit County Sheriff's Office in Breckenridge, Colorado, arrested and booked Rafael Ceba-Garcia into the Garfield County Jail. He was arrested on two counts of sexual assault of a child by a person in a position of trust. The victim in this case was a female child under 15 years of age.
"The coordinated efforts between the Phoenix and Denver ICE offices exemplify the tremendous work the men and women of ICE undertake to identify and prioritize the targeting of individuals who pose considerable threats to the most vulnerable," said Corey A. Price, field office director for ERO Phoenix.
Ceba-Garcia is a citizen of Spain who initially entered the U.S. in February 2013 as a nonimmigrant visitor under the Visa Waiver Program, but failed to depart the U.S., overstaying his term of his admission by more than seven years.
On July 24, ERO Denver lodged an immigration detainer with the Garfield County Jail; however, the detainer was not honored due to Colorado's sanctuary law, and Ceba-Garcia was released Aug. 12, after he posted a cash bond. On Oct. 15, the Summit County District Court issued a bench warrant for Ceba-Garcia after he failed to appear at his criminal court hearing.
On Oct. 16, ERO Denver provided ERO Phoenix with an investigative lead that Ceba-Garcia was residing in Apache Junction, Arizona. That lead resulted in a successful ICE arrest.
Ceba-Garcia will remain in ICE custody pending removal to his home country. ICE will alert Colorado officials of Ceba-Garcia's custody status so that they may pursue extradition through formal criminal judicial avenues.
Price continued, "We will continue to safeguard our communities by enforcing the immigration laws of the United States, and aggressively target sexual predators."
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