ICE arrests Honduran 'noncitizen' after Fairfax County ignored detainer request on child sex crime charges

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced on Wednesday the arrest of a 30-year-old Honduran national accused of sex crimes against a child in Fairfax County, Virginia. The agency stated that Fairfax County had twice released the individual despite ICE issuing a detainer request.

According to ICE, the Honduran national was arrested at his residence in Bladensburg, Maryland, on April 15th after Fairfax County failed to honor the agency's detainer and released him from custody. ICE did not disclose the individual's identity in their release, Fox News reports.

"This Honduran noncitizen stands accused of some very serious crimes and represented a threat to the children of the Washington, D.C. area," the agency said, criticizing Fairfax County's policy of not cooperating with ICE detainers and administrative warrants. "When local jurisdictions have policies in place which prohibit them from cooperating with ICE ERO [Enforcement and Removal Operations], they put the suspects, law enforcement officers, and most importantly, the members of our local communities at risk."

The details of the Honduran national's original entry into the United States remain unknown, ICE stated. However, the agency revealed that the individual had been arrested and released multiple times on charges related to sex crimes involving a child.

According to ICE, the Fairfax County Police Department first arrested the man on July 5, 2023, charging him with felony carnal knowledge of a child aged 13 to 14 years old, without force. The following day, ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations placed an immigration detainer against the individual. Despite this, the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center did not honor the detainer request and released the man on a $10,000 bond on July 10, 2023.

In February, Fairfax County police arrested the man again, charging him with two additional counts of felony carnal knowledge of a child aged 13 to 14 years old without force, and two counts of felony indecent liberties with a child under 15 years of age. The jail then released the individual later that same day before ICE could file another detainer.

During the most recent arrest, ICE deportation officers served the Honduran national with a notice to appear before a Department of Justice immigration judge. The individual will remain in ICE custody pending the outcome of his removal proceedings, the agency stated.