CAMPBELL COUNTY, Va. – A man who illegally entered the U.S. was arrested in Virginia last week on charges that he sexually assaulted a child, authorities confirmed.
Renzo Mendoza Montes, 32, was identified as the perpetrator and taken into custody by the Campbell County Sheriff’s Office. He faces multiple felony charges for allegedly sexually assaulting a minor, the Daily Wire reported.
Law enforcement authorities said Mendoza is a Venezuelan national who is in the country illegally. He was initially detained by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol in El Paso, Texas on September 2, 2023, but subsequently released due to President Joe Biden’s immigration policies, according to ABC 13 News.
Due to the criminal offense, Montes was being held without bond. However, he is now reportedly in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials.
Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) of Virginia responded to the heartbreak story late Monday evening by calling for justice in the case.
“We pray for the victim tonight and thank the Campbell County Sheriff’s Department,” Youngkin said. “Let’s be clear, prosecution must be to the fullest extent of the law.”
The border crisis created by Biden has resulted in more than 7 million illegal aliens flooding into the U.S. with daily reports of violent crimes being committed by people who’ve skirted federal immigration law.
For instance, last week Laken Hope Riley, 22, was brutally killed while out for a morning run on the University of Georgia campus. Police identified the suspect as 26-year-old Jose Antonio Ibarra. He has been charged with malice murder, felony murder, aggravated battery, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, kidnapping, hindering a 911 call and concealing the death of another, Law Officer reported.
Ibarra is a Venezuelan national who illegally crossed the southern border into El Paso, Texas in September 2022, News Nation reported, citing multiple DHS sources. He was released from DHS custody over a lack of detention space, according to the outlet.
Furthermore, last Wednesday U.S. Border Patrol Chief Jason Owens posted on social media that agents patrolling the southwest border caught 10 illegal immigrants during the previous weekend who have “violent criminal histories including murder, rape, and drug/weapons trafficking.”
Along with the constant reminder of the ongoing border crisis, Owens noted, “So far in FY24, USBP has apprehended +6,400 subjects with criminal convictions.”
