WORCESTER, Mass. — A Guatemalan man who is in the country illegally and accused of sex crimes against a young Massachusetts girl is in federal custody, ICE officials said Tuesday.
Juan Rene Barcenes-Velasquez, 56, of Guatemala, was taken into federal custody on March 31 in Worcester, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said in a statement. He remains in ICE custody.
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His arrest happened the same day Barcenes-Velasquez was arraigned in Worcester District Court for five counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14 years of age, officials said.
“Juan Rene Barcenes-Velasquez illegally entered the United States and unlawfully settled in Massachusetts,” ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston acting Field Office Director Patricia Hyde said in a statement. “Now he has apparently repeatedly victimized a child, doing unthinkable damage to her.”
Later on the day of his arraignment, ICE Boston lodged an immigration detainer against Barcenes-Velasquez with the Worcester District Court, which the court honored, Hyde said.
Officers from the Worcester District Court turned him over to federal authorities. ICE Boston arrested and served Barcenes-Velasquez with a notice to appear before a Justice Department immigration judge.
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“We are happy that our law enforcement partners opted to honor our immigration detainer against Barcenes-Velasquez,” Hyde said.
“It is refreshing that our partners in Worcester placed a priority on public safety,” Hyde said. “The alternative would be for ICE to send a team of officers to make an at-large arrest potentially placing the officers, the offender — and most importantly, the community — in harm’s way.”
More than two decades ago, Barcenes-Velasquez was convicted of abuse of a prevention order and placed on probation, after his May 27, 2003 arraignment for that charge in Worcester District Court.
Hyde said Barcenes-Velasquez illegally entered the U.S. on an unknown date, at an unknown location, without being inspected, admitted or paroled by a U.S. immigration official.
Barcenes-Velasquez “represents a significant threat to our community that ICE Boston will not tolerate,” Hyde said.
News of his arrest came days after Hyde’s office announced that a Brazilian fugitive convicted of homicide and other crimes in his native country was arrested in Marlboro.
Last month, federal authorities announced the arrest of a Brazilian woman who was previously deported and who is charged with multiple sex crimes against a Massachusetts child on Cape Cod.
And in March, federal authorities announced the arrest of a Guatemalan national accused of sexually assaulting a Massachusetts child inside a local laundromat.
“We will continue to prioritize the safety of New England by arresting and removing criminal alien offenders,” Hyde said.
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This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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