[Baltimore Sun] FOX45 News: Baltimore County released convicted sex offenders despite ICE detainer requests

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In Baltimore County, FOX45 has found four cases where convicted sex offenders, living in the country unlawfully, were released from jail, despite ICE filing a formal requests to keep them locked up.

“Our first case is a child molester,” said the director of Maryland’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Mathew Elliston, during a ride along with FOX45.

Under his tenure, Elliston has strongly encouraged his agents to prioritize sex offenders over any other case.

“I’m very proud to say the Baltimore Field Office for the last two years leads the United States in the number of sex offenders arrested,” he said.

It’s a mission he says is being barred by local sanctuary policies prohibiting corporations with ICE.

The following are the four cases FOX45 has found:

55-year-old Arles Efrain Avila was accused of molesting two close family members, girls, ages 9 and 10 years old. He pleaded guilty to 4th-degree sexual assault as well as 2 counts of 2nd-degree assault.
41-year-old Edmundo Acosta was accused of inappropriately touching a 7-year-old girl his wife was babysitting. He pleaded guilty to 2nd-degree assault.
52-year-old Miguel Flores-Avalos was accused of sexually abusing a girl between the ages of 8 and 11 years old. He pleaded guilty to sexual abuse of a minor, a felony charge with a max sentence of 25 years behind bars.
And 39-year-old Luis Portillo-Henriquez was accused of repeatedly raping a 14-year-old family member. He pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a minor living under the same roof. Another felony charge with a 25-year maximum sentence.

In the last fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30, Portillo-Henriquez marked the 105th sex offender captured by Maryland’s ICE agents. The case put them on pace for a record number of annual arrests, and has also helped forge new immigration policies in Baltimore County.

“I have no tolerance for sex offenders in our community,” said Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski after FOX45 reported on the release of Portillo-Henriquez.

Olszewski has since agreed to give ICE a 48-hour notice before releasing anyone on their list moving forward. That ends a yearslong sanctuary policy blocking local authorities from turning over inmates to federal immigration agents.

Elliston calls it a step in the right direction but says he won’t be completely satisfied until all local jurisdictions follow suit.

“I would love to hear even a politician’s take on why you would not release a child molester to ICE. There’s no political spin you can put on that, that it’s somehow a public safety benefit to let that person back into the community,” he said.

Among the jurisdictions doubling down on sanctuary policies, Howard County Executive Calvin Ball tells FOX45 that under no circumstances will they hand over inmates to ICE.