Cops: Man rapes 15-year-old Md. girl, ICE confirms suspect is repeat immigration violator
MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. (ABC7) — A man accused of raping a 15-year-old girl in her grandmother’s bedroom had been deported from the United States less than three years ago, officials with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed to ABC7.
Emilio Carrasco-Hernandez, 37, of Langley Park, is currently charged with second-degree rape, sex abuse of a minor, third-degree sex offense and fourth-degree sex offense.
WHAT HAPPENED
On August 26, the 15-year-old girl spoke with Montgomery County Police's Special Victims Investigation Division. She explained that her stepfather, Carrasco-Hernandez, had sexually assaulted her on multiple occasions between August 16 and August 25 of this year.
In one particular instance, the victim stated she was in her grandmother's bedroom when Carrasco-Hernandez entered, pulled down her pants and underwear and began biting her shirt. The 5-foot-7-inches tall, 200-pound man then slowly walked the victim to the bed's edge and lowered his own pants.
"Victim A stated that she could not move and Emilio Carrasco-Hernandez was squishing her with his body," detectives wrote in court documents.
What's alleged to have followed is too graphic to publish. The victim, however, reported having trouble using the bathroom afterward because it was "very painful" and "stinging." She also shared that Carrasco-Hernandez would kiss her lips, neck, ears, back and waist.
A TOUGH SPOT TO BE IN
The victim's mother — who is also Carrasco-Hernandez's wife — told ABC7 by telephone Saturday that she heard noises coming from the bedroom, opened the door and was shocked by what she saw.
“I shouted, ‘What’s going on here!? Tell me the truth!'”
She ordered Carrasco-Hernandez to immediately leave the Wheaton home. She then called Montgomery County Police.
"Everything is coming down for me," she stated, breaking down in tears. “It’s hard for me because that’s my daughter and that’s my husband... I’m mad with them both."
The victim's mother explained that she believes the sex was "consensual." Yet, she went on to acknowledge that the age of consent in Maryland is 16-years-old. Alcohol, she opined, was the root cause.
“My husband, he has trouble with his drinking. He told me he was very drunk and told me he now knows it wasn’t right. But he told me that in the moment, he wasn’t thinking what he was doing. You, know how it is when someone’s drunk..."
SUSPECT BEHIND BARS
On Thursday, Montgomery County District Court Judge Amy Bills denied bond for Carrasco-Hernandez. He remains incarcerated at the Montgomery County Correctional Facility in Clarksburg facing up to 56 years in state prison.
According to ICE, Carrasco-Hernandez is a Honduran national living in the U.S. illegally. In April 2017, a federal immigration judge deported the then 35-year-old. He later illegally re-entered the U.S. on an unknown date and by unknown means.
"Depending on an alien's criminality, an alien who re-enters the United States after having been previously deported commits a felony punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison, if convicted," an ICE official told ABC7 by email Friday.
Up until the time of his arrest, Carrasco-Hernandez had been working as a dishwasher at an unknown local business. He has three children, including an eleven-month-old daughter, court documents state.
SEVEN CASES IN SIX WEEKS
In the last six weeks, Montgomery County Police have arrested at least seven undocumented immigrants for allegedly raping and sexually assaulting females in Germantown, Rockville, Silver Spring, and Wheaton. One victim was 11-years-old at the time of her repeated abuse. Other victims were 12, 15 and 16-years-old.
RELATED: Police: Md. man molests, tries to rape 12-year-old girl while wife in labor at hospital
RELATED: 'Take your clothes off.' Md. man accused of raping teenage girl at knifepoint in bedroom
During a press conference Tuesday, Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich (D) revealed that he might amend portions of an executive order that he signed into law last month. Among a bevy of pro-immigrant policies, Elrich’s executive order banned ICE agents from entering secure portions of the county jail to apprehend wanted undocumented immigrants. Elrich's office has not released any additional details or plans since then.
Correction: Although Carrasco-Hernandez's mailing address is listed as Hyattsville, city officials there pointed out that the apartment complex is actually within Langley Park. This story has been updated accordingly.
