A fugitive from Brazil wanted on rape charges who was hiding out in the U.S. since 2022 was apprehended by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and deported.
ICE officials said in a news release Monday that Marcio Dos Santos, a 40-year-old Brazilian national, was arrested Feb. 14 near his home in Bridgeport, Connecticut, The Daily Caller reported.
On March 25, a Department of Justice immigration judge ordered Dos Santos' removed from the United States to Brazil, and deportation officers with ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) facility in Boston deported Dos Santos to Brazil on May 31 and transferred custody to authorities in Brazil.
The news release stated Dos Santos was admitted to the U.S. by Customs and Border Protection in Newark, New Jersey, on March 11, 2022.
"Marcio Dos Santos attempted to flee a rape charge in Brazil by hiding out in Connecticut," ERO Boston Field Office Director Todd M. Lyons said in the news release. "He posed a threat to the residents of our community, and we could not allow that to continue.
"The men and women of ERO Boston are the best in the business at finding noncitizens who don't want to be found. We will continue to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing the most egregious noncitizen offenders from New England."
This is the second time this year ERO Boston has apprehended a Brazilian national hiding in the U.S. who was facing criminal charges in his home country.
On March 6, ICE said in a news release that Antonio Dos Santos, 52, who had entered the country illegally near San Luis, Arizona, in May 2021, was deported on Feb. 23 after being wanted by Brazilian authorities for aggravated homicide of a child under the age of 14. It is not known if Antonio Dos Santos and Marcio Dos Santos are related.
ICE said in the news release that Antonio Dos Santos was arrested Oct. 18, 2023, near his home in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
"After being alerted to the fugitive's potential presence within its area of responsibility, ERO Boston initiated an investigation and apprehended him without incident," the news release stated. "Dos Santos remained in ERO Boston custody during his removal proceedings in federal immigration court. He was removed to Brazil by ERO Boston officers via air on Feb. 23."