ICE ERO deports former Maryland nursing assistant convicted of sexually assaulting patient

BALTIMORE – A Haitian national residing in Salisbury, Md., convicted of multiple sexual assaults including that of a patient under his care, was turned over to Haitian law enforcement representatives Tuesday by officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).

Joel Monfort, 53, was transported via an ICE Air Operations charter aircraft, escorted by ERO officers, to the Port-au-Prince International Airport in Haiti.

Monfort’s removal to Haiti comes less than a month after his arrest by ERO Baltimore under Salisbury’s Criminal Alien Program. Monfort, who entered the country illegally, attempted to gain immigration status in 1996 with a fraudulent marriage. However, on March 20, 2000, his conditional lawful permanent residency status was terminated and he was placed in removal proceedings. He failed to appear for a removal hearing July 5, 2000, in Newark, N.J., and was ordered removed in absentia by an immigration judge.

On Sept. 28, 2001, Monfort was convicted of second-degree assault and sex offense in Salisbury and was sentenced to 12 months in prison. On Feb. 13, 2004 he was again convicted of second-degree assault and sentenced to 10 years in prison This time Monfort was found guilty of sexually assaulting  a motorcycle accident victim, who he was caring for as a nursing assistant at Salisbury’s Peninsula Regional Medical Center.

Montfort was identified by ERO officers as being unlawfully present in the United States and arrested him for being in violation of U.S. immigration law.

"Criminal aliens disrupt our communities and pose a threat to law abiding residents in Maryland," said Dorothy Herrera-Niles, field office director for ERO Baltimore. "As this case makes clear, ICE works closely with law enforcement agencies here and abroad to ensure convicted criminals are returned to their home countries in order to be held accountable for their actions."

ERO's Criminal Alien Program (CAP) identifies potentially deportable aliens incarcerated in jails and prisons throughout the United States. CAP officers interview and review inmates' biographical information. ERO initiates removal proceedings against criminal aliens through CAP. Under CAP, ERO uses a risk-based approach to make determinations about the detention and arrest of criminal aliens, with priority given to cases involving individuals deemed to be a security or public safety threat.