A Mexican national convicted of sex offenses in the United States and on the run from federal immigration officials has been arrested in Utah.
Jesus Guitron-Aguilera, who had been on the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Top 10 Most-Wanted list since 2010, was arrested by ICE and Provo police on Tuesday, said Robert Culley, field office director for ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations.
Guitron-Aguilera, 56, went on the run after his appeal of an earlier federal deportation order was dismissed in August 2010. A field worker, he had last been believed to be living near Ephraim; he was located in Provo on Tuesday after ICE received a tip, Culley said.
His criminal history includes a 1992 sex offense and drunken driving convictions, among other misdemeanor offenses, a news release from ICE says. He was sentenced to five years in a Michigan prison for the 1992 sexual assault. A search of Utah court records reveals a 1990 conviction of class A misdemeanor unlawfully selling or supplying alcohol to minors.
Requests to ICE for other details of Guitron-Aguilera’s criminal history and arrest were not immediately returned Wednesday.
“Guitron-Aguilera was a clear threat to the safety of our community and with his arrest we are sending a clear message to illegal aliens who commit crimes in the United States: ‘America is not a safe haven for you,’” Culley stated. “You will face justice for your crimes and then we will send you back to your home country.”
He encouraged anyone with information about the whereabouts of ICE fugitives to call local immigration officials or the agency’s national hotline: 1-866-DHS-2-ICE (866-347-2423).