Undocumented immigrant convicted of groping girls at Virginia high school released to ICE custody
FAIRFAX, Va. - An undocumented immigrant who was convicted of groping girls at a Northern Virginia high school has been released into the custody of ICE, according to the Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office.
What we know:
In early March, Israel Flores Ortiz was accused of groping several of his classmates after officials at Fairfax High School reported multiple cases of assault. A police investigation revealed Ortiz had assaulted numerous girls at the school.
Victims reported that Ortiz would come up behind them in crowded hallways and grab them between the legs.
He turned himself in on March 7, according to police. Additional victims came forward after his arrest.
Ortiz was convicted on nine counts of assault and battery. In April, he was sentenced to less than a year in prison. However, he served about 140 days behind bars after getting credit for time served and good behavior.
In June, one of the victims spoke to FOX 5, saying, "There's a lot of people to blame for what happened here, including schools, state law that allowed an adult man to attend school with 14-year-old girls. I'm glad to see there's been some form of justice in a sense. He's being removed but unfortunately it was too little too late."
READ MORE | 18-year-old accused of groping classmates at Fairfax High School found guilty on 9 counts
In ICE custody
Dig deeper:
According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Ortiz entered the U.S. illegally in 2024. The agency issued a detainer for Ortiz after his arrest in April.
ICE has been incredibly vocal about this case, saying they want Ortiz out of the country and calling out Virginia's immigration policies.
"This 18-year-old criminal illegal alien should NOT have been attending a Virginia high school and allowed to prey on innocent teenage girls," DHS Deputy Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in a March statement.
Ortiz was scheduled to be released on Sept. 3. However, Sheriff’s officials said he was released into the custody of ICE on Monday.
"Heartening to see that the sheriff's department actively cooperated with ICE and observed they needed to transfer custody," said Sean Kennedy with Virginias 4 Safe Communities. "It's under Virginia law they have to by we've seen other instances in other jurisdictions where they've actively thwarted ICE or kept them in the dark in order to comply with their local trust policies."
FOX 5 DC has reached out to DHS to see what the next steps are and when Ortiz could be removed from the country.
The Source: Information in this report is from the Fairfax County Sheriff's Office.