ICE arrests illegal immigrant facing rape charge after his release under New York City 'sanctuary status'

Immigration and Customs Enforcement apprehended a man, accused of raping a teenage girl, who was released under New York City’s "sanctuary status" despite the agency’s request to hold him.

Miguel Federico Ajqui-Ajtzalam, a 20-year-old Guatemalan national, was arraigned Friday on charges of raping a 13-year-old girl five times in 2018. However, the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office did not ask for bail, and the judge decided to cut him loose on supervised release.

ICE, which had issued a detainer asking the city to keep Ajqui-Ajtzalam jailed, was able to track him days later, bringing him into federal custody on Monday.

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