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Haitian national arrested for sexually assaulting child in Mansfield, officials say
The 18-year-old Haitian migrant was arrested last week and remains in ICE custody.
An 18-year-old Haitian migrant was arrested in Mansfield and charged with sexually assaulting a minor, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials.
Akim Marc Desire lawfully entered the country in June 2023. The charges against him violate the terms of his lawful entry.
Desire was arrested by Mansfield police on Aug. 28 and charged with indecent assault and battery on a child under 14. The Boston office of ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations lodged an immigration detainer against him with Mansfield police after the arrest.
He was arraigned in Attleboro District Court on Aug. 29 and was arrested by ERO Boston officers on Aug. 30, officials said. Desire remains in ERO custody and is set to appear before a Department of Justice immigration judge.
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ICE officials did not release any specific details about the allegations against Desire, including where the alleged assault took place.
A mother and her 10-year-old son reported the incident to Mansfield police, alleging that Desire inappropriately touched the boy at a neighbor’s house, WHDH reported. Desire was located and arrested at a home on East Street. He reportedly denied the accusations.
“Akim Marc Desire allegedly victimized a minor member of our Massachusetts community,” ERO Boston Field Office Director Todd Lyons said in a statement. “We cannot tolerate such potentially dire threat to the welfare of children in our community. ERO Boston will continue to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing egregious noncitizen offenders from our New England neighborhoods.”
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Immigration detainers are lodged by ERO officials against noncitizens who have been arrested for criminal activity and taken into custody by local law enforcement. The detainers are official requests from ICE to local law enforcement meant to notify federal officers as early as possible before “removable noncitizens” are set to be released from custody.
In March, another Haitian migrant allegedly raped a 15-year-old girl at a Massachusetts shelter and was arrested soon afterwards. In that case, an immigration detainer was also lodged, but Plymouth County Superior Court “refused to honor” the detainer and the suspect was released on bail in June. He was then arrested by ERO Boston officers in August.
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