A Haitian migrant has been arrested in Massachusetts on charges of allegedly molesting a 10-year-old boy who lived nearby. Akim Marc Desire, 18, was taken into custody in Mansfield, Massachusetts, and faces charges of indecent assault and battery on a child under the age of 14.
Desire initially entered the United States legally last year, arriving in Miami before moving to Massachusetts. He is now in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
“Akim Marc Desire allegedly victimized a minor member of our Massachusetts community,” said Todd M. Lyons, Boston ICE Field Office Director, in a statement to Fox News. “We cannot tolerate such a potentially dire threat to the welfare of children in our community. ERO Boston will continue to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing egregious noncitizen offenders from our New England neighborhoods.”
Though Desire entered the country legally, he later violated the terms of his entry, making him unlawfully present in the U.S. when the alleged crime took place.
His entry was facilitated under the Biden administration’s parole program, which allows migrants from Haiti, Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to enter the U.S. if they have a U.S.-based sponsor. However, this program was paused in July after the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) discovered significant fraud among applicants.
Despite the pause, DHS recently announced the program’s resumption with “additional vetting of U.S.-based supporters to strengthen the integrity of the processes.”
“With these updated procedures in place, DHS is resuming the issuance of new Advance Travel Authorizations and will closely monitor how this new process is operating moving forward,” a DHS spokesperson stated, according to Fox News.