Immigration

ICE Nabs Illegal Immigrant ‘Gotaway’ Convicted Of Sexually Assaulting A Child

(Flickr/U.S. Department of Homeland Security)

Deportation officers apprehended an illegal immigrant who entered the United States undetected and sexually assaulted a minor in Maryland.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents apprehended Luis Portillo-Henriquez, a 39-year-old Salvadoran national arrested multiple times for local crimes and later convicted of sexually assaulting a minor in Baltimore, earlier this month, the agency announced in a press release. ICE highlighted that Portillo entered the U.S. undetected at an unknown time and location, and without being inspected or paroled by any federal immigration officials, classifying him as a “gotaway.”

“Luis Portillo-Henriquez has been convicted of sexually abusing a Maryland child,” ERO Baltimore Field Office Director Matthew Elliston said in a statement. “He represented a significant threat to the children of our Maryland neighborhoods.”

“ERO Baltimore continues to prioritize public safety by apprehending and removing the most egregious noncitizen offenders from our communities. We are only out for the worst of the worst,” Elliston continued.

The District Court for Baltimore County, Maryland-Traffic System convicted Portillo of a DUI in April 2010, and later convicted him of driving without a license in September 2017, according to ICE.

Prince George’s County Police Department in Hyattsville arrested Portillo in August 2021, for changing lanes unsafely, and the Frederick Police Department arrested him in September of that year for DUI, according to ICE. The Baltimore City Police Department arrested Portillo on March 1, 2023, for driving with a suspended license and arrested him again on March 13 for sexual abuse of a minor and other sexual offenses.

The Salvadoran national was convicted of sexual abuse of a minor on August 9, 2023, and sentenced to 25 years of imprisonment. However, the Maryland court then suspended all but 18 months of his prison sentence.

Deportation officers apprehended Portillo in Ellicott City, Maryland, on June 10, the agency said. He will remain in Enforcement and Removal Operations custody pending the outcome of his removal proceedings.

The ICE arrest follows other high-profile crimes in Maryland, allegedly at the hands of illegal immigrants.

Victor Antonio Martinez-Hernandez, a 23-year-old Salvadoran national living in the U.S. illegally, was arrested earlier this month in Oklahoma for the alleged rape and murder of Rachel Morin, a 37-year-old mother of five who was out on a Maryland hiking trail in August 2023.

Numerous jurisdictions within Maryland are identified as “sanctuary” cities for illegal immigrants by the Center for Immigration Studies, including Baltimore and Prince George’s County.

Featured Image Credit: Flickr/U.S. Department of Homeland Security