Immigration

Illegal Migrant Deported For Rape Reentered US, Got Convicted Of Another Sex Crime

Photo by Mani Albrecht U.S. Customs and Border Protection Office of Public Affairs Visual Communications Division

A previously deported illegal migrant convicted of rape reentered the United States and committed another sexual crime, federal authorities say.

Rulaman Lopez-Nolasco, a 42-year-old Mexican national, was convicted in July of unlawful reentry into the U.S. following his apprehension by deportation officers in Massachusetts earlier this year, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Lopez has a criminal record with local and federal law enforcement spanning back decades.

The Mexican national was convicted of third-degree rape by the Superior Court of Kent County, Delaware, in December 2004, according to ICE. He previously entered the U.S. unlawfully at an unknown date and unknown location, without being inspected or admitted by any immigration official.

Baltimore ICE agents took custody of Lopez after he served two years of his ten-year prison sentence, the agency stated. A “designated official” from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ordered him to be deported as an aggravated felon from the U.S. on November 21, 2006, and Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) agents removed him to Mexico less than a mother later.

Lopez then, again, illegally reentered the U.S. at an unknown date and time, according to ICE. He was brought to the attention of local police again after getting busted for prostitution, as he was convicted in November 2015 for “sexual conduct for a fee” by the Lynn District Court in Lynn, Massachusetts.

Deportation agents apprehended Lopez on January 25 in Lynn, Massachusetts, and served him a removal order, according to the agency. He was then convicted for unlawful reentry after deportation on July 9 by the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, and he remains in federal custody.

“Rulaman Lopez-Nolasco is an unlawfully present convicted sex offender,” field office director Todd Lyons said in a statement. “He was removed from the United States following two convictions for sex crimes.”

“Then, he attempted to unlawfully re-enter the country to potentially revictimize our residents,” Lyons continued. “ERO Boston will continue to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing egregious noncitizen offenders from our New England communities.”

Lopez’s conviction of unlawful reentry and multiple local crimes follows an ongoing border crisis in the U.S. Border Patrol agents have encountered more than seven million illegal migrants attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border since President Joe Biden entered office, according to the latest Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data.

Border Patrol agents have encountered more than 50,000 criminal illegal migrants attempting to enter the U.S. under Biden’s tenure, according to CBP statistics.

The border crisis — and the high-profile illegal migrant crimes that have coincided with it — has made immigration a top concern among American voters. Vice President Kamala, now the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, has previously signaled support for decriminalizing illegal border entries.

Featured Image Credit: Photo by Mani Albrecht U.S. Customs and Border Protection Office of Public Affairs Visual Communications Division