An illegal alien who entered the U.S. for the fourth time as a “gotaway” was deported back to his home country of Mexico this week, where he was wanted for the rape of a child, U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced on Thursday.
ICE says that Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Houston repatriated 59-year-old Nestor Flores Encarnacion to Mexico on Jan. 23, where he was handed over to Mexican authorities.
“This foreign fugitive brazenly entered the U.S. in violation of our nation’s laws on four separate occasions to evade prosecution in Mexico for allegedly raping a child,” said ERO Houston Field Office Director Bret A. Bradford on Thursday.
“Dangerous foreign fugitives and criminal aliens who are accused of, or have committed, heinous crimes like sexually assaulting a child will find no safe haven in Southeast Texas,” Bradford said.
“Our immigration officers work tirelessly to successfully locate and apprehend undocumented aliens in the Houston area who threaten public safety, national security, and border security, and will not rest until they’re repatriated to their country of origin and no longer a threat to the community,” he added.
According to ICE, Flores first entered the U.S. on Feb. 16, 2002, near Roma, Texas, when he was removed back to Mexico after a single day.
He illegally reentered the country two more times on Feb. 20, 2002, and Feb. 22, 2002. On both occasions he was arrested by Border Patrol and returned to Mexico the same day, ICE said.
Flores then reentered the country for the fourth time at an unknown date and location, what is commonly referred to as a “gotaway.”
ERO Houston deportation officers successfully took Flores into custody in August of last year at a residence in Houston, after receiving an alert indicating that Flores was residing in the U.S. illegally and was wanted in Mexico for the rape of a child.
Following his arrest, Flores was placed into immigration proceedings and granted a voluntary departure under safeguards by an immigration judge with the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review in December.
