Illegal immigrant arrested for violent crimes by ICE after MA court refuses to honor detainer | Law Enforcement Today

BOSTON, MA - Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced its arrest of a migrant who was living in Massachusetts after illegally crossing the border almost two years ago.

According to Fox News, 24-year-old Julio Esteban Batista-Castillo has been charged with kidnapping, malicious destruction of property, breaking and entering, and home invasion as well as several assault and battery charges. He was arrested in Boston by ICE agents on November 18th.

In a press release published on Tuesday, December 3rd, ICE said that the suspect illegally entered the United States back in January of 2023. Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Bostin acting Field Office Director Patricia Hyde said that Batista-Castillo was taken into ICE custody after an immigration detainer was not honored by the Roxbury District Court. The court had reportedly arraigned him before his ICE arrest.

Hyde said in a statement, "Batista has been accused of very serious crimes, including assault and battery involving strangulation and a firearm. This is not someone you want to release into the community, so ERO Boston lodged an immigration detainer against him with the Roxbury District Court — a simply request for law enforcement to hold him in custody for a short time so our officers could arrest him in a safe, controlled setting. Unfortunately, the detainer was not honored, putting everyone in the community and our officers at risk."

Batista-Castillo is one of many violent individuals who currently reside in the United States illegally and that have been apprehended by ICE Boston this year alone. According to reports, Belardis Tapia Gonzalez, an MS-13 gang member accused of second-degree child molestation, was arrested by ICE officials in Lynn, Massachusetts, on November 18th.

Another illegal immigrant suspected of child sex crimes is Mateo Hincaple Cardona, whom was arrested by ICE officials in October in Boston. He was booked on charges of enticing a child under 16, distribution of obscene matter, and lascivious posing and exhibiting a child in the nude.

As noted in other reports, supporters of strict immigration enforcement argue that instances like these highlight the need for reform to prevent dangerous individuals from coming and going freely across borders. Recent reports showcase alarming statistics indicating increasing violent crime rates linked to immigrants who came to the U.S. illegally. 

ICE continues its commitment to prioritizing the arrest and removal of individuals with severe criminal backgrounds and repeat offenders. Fox News reported that ICE arrested three illegal immigrants in Massachusetts; two of them were charged with rape and the other was convicted of the same crime in Brazil.

ICE said one of the suspects, an illegal immigrant from Guatemala, was arrested for forcible rape of a child. He was released in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, by authorities, who ignored the detainer request made by ICE. The suspect, 21-year-old Mynor Stiven De Paz-Munoz, entered the U.S. illegally in September 2020, near Eagle Pass, Texas, and was released with a notice to appear before an immigration judge.

He was later arrested on February 29th for rape of a child by force, rape of a child, and indecent assault and battery on a person 14 or older. The second suspect, 42-year-old Billy Erney Buitrago-Bustos of Colombia, was arrested on October 8, 2023, for allegedly raping a child by force, statutory rape, and aggravated rape.

He was admitted into the U.S. in May of 2016 in New York, but failed to leave under the terms of his visa. The third suspect, 41-year-old Alexandre Romao De Oliveira, is a foreign fugitive convicted of raping a child in Brazil. He was convicted in Brazil in February of 2022 and sentenced to 14 years in prison.

However, he fled Brazil before he could serve his sentence and in April of 2022, he illegally entered the U.S. near Santa Teresa, New Mexico. The arrests came a few days after Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey said her state would not cooperate with President-elect Donald Trump's federal immigration enforcement efforts once he takes office again in January.