Florida law enforcement authorities arrested a Venezuelan national out on bond living in the U.S. unlawfully Friday who may have ties to the gang Tren de Aragua for allegedly trafficking a child for sex.
Enyerbert Blanco Blanco, a previously deported 27-year-old who was out on bond for an attempted murder charge in New York, was arrested in Palm Beach County, Florida, for allegedly trafficking a 15-year-old missing girl for commercial sex, according to court documents obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation and statements made by the Palm Beach County Sheriff. Another woman, a Colombian national identified as 33-year-old Yenire Karolina Pache Coleiton, was also arrested and accused of trafficking.
Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw fumed about the state of the current immigration system during a Monday press conference about the arrest.
“Here’s a guy, deported, now he’s illegally back in the country for a second time, so obviously whatever this vetting system is at the border ain’t working,” Bradshaw said. “The border’s not closed, illegals are still coming in.”
“This is the fourth time we’ve had something here in Palm Beach County involving crimes committed by illegals,” he continued.
A sergeant with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office stated during the press conference that they suspect the crime involves the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua due to tattoos on one of the defendants, but their office could not yet confirm this suspicion.
Responding to an anonymous tip on Thursday, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office began an investigation into a runaway girl from New York who had been reported missing since September, according to the court documents. Online advertisements for sexual services, which included the missing girl, led investigators to a local Studio 6 hotel.
Authorities located the girl in one of the hotel rooms along with lingerie, condoms, over $1,000 in cash and two phones, according to court documents. Investigators say a search of the phones uncovered chats with the defendant about how to perform sex acts and menu options for clients. The girl was reportedly forced to hand out “quick visits” for $120, half-an-hour visits for $180 and a full hour of her time would cost $250, law enforcement discovered.
The victim did not get to keep much of her illicit income, court documents revealed. She was required to hand over half her earnings to the defendant, along with half the hotel rate for the stay.
Blanco and Coleiton were in a nearby hotel room during the investigation and were subsequently arrested, the court documents stated. A records check revealed that Blanco was not only out on bond for an attempted murder charge in New York but had also been recently arrested in Miami on drug possession charges.
“How can he be out on bond for an attempted murder out of New York?” Bradshaw asked. “He gets arrested in Miami for drug trafficking, and he’s out walking around. That’s unconscionable!”
“But I can tell you one thing, folks. That female and this guy here that was involved in this, their butts are staying in my jail,” the sheriff pledged. “They’re not coming out!”
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) could not immediately provide a comment on the case, but the sheriff said the agency has lodged a detainer for both individuals.
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