***  BEYOND OUR BRIDGES ***  GUATEMALAN CHARGED W/ RAPE, INDECENT A&B ON MASSACHUSETTS MINOR, ARRESTED BY BOSTON ERO…

SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS – [ICE MEDIA STATEMENT/PHOTO] – Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston apprehended an unlawfully present 20-year-old Guatemalan noncitizen charged in Massachusetts with rape and indecent assault and battery against a minor. Officers with ERO Boston arrested Selvin Alex Galvez-Mejia Oct. 18 in Springfield. “Selvin Alex Galvez-Mejia stands accused of horrifically victimizing a Massachusetts child and represents a significant threat to our neighborhoods,” said ERO Boston acting Field Office Director Patricia H. Hyde. “We owe it to the children of our New England communities to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing egregious noncitizen threats.” Galvez unlawfully entered the United States on an unknown date, at an unknown location and without being inspected, admitted or paroled by a U.S. immigration official. The Springfield District Court arraigned Galvez July 18 for two counts aggravated rape of a child and indecent assault and battery on a person 14 or older. The Springfield District Court later released Galvez after he posted bail. Officers with ERO Boston arrested Galvez Oct. 18 in Springfield and issued him a notice to appear before a Department of Justice immigration judge. Galvez remains in ERO custody. ERO conducts removals of individuals without a lawful basis to remain in the United States, including at the order of immigration judges with the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review. The Executive Office for Immigration Review is a separate entity from the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Immigration judges in these courts make decisions based on the merits of each individual case, determining if a noncitizen is subject to a final order of removal or eligible for certain forms of relief from removal. As one of ICE’s three operational directorates, ERO is the principal federal law enforcement authority in charge of domestic immigration enforcement. ERO’s mission is to protect the homeland through the arrest and removal of those who undermine the safety of U.S. communities and the integrity of U.S. immigration laws, and its primary areas of focus are interior enforcement operations, management of the agency’s detained and non-detained populations, and repatriation of noncitizens who have received final orders of removal. ERO’s workforce consists of more than 7,700 law enforcement and non-law enforcement support personnel across 25 domestic field offices and 208 locations nationwide, 30 overseas postings, and multiple temporary duty travel assignments along the border. Members of the public can report crimes and suspicious activity by dialing 866-DHS-2-ICE (866-347-2423) or completing the online tip form.