ICE 'most-wanted' fugitive captured in Chicago area
CHICAGO — Officers with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) arrested one of ERO's most-wanted fugitives Friday after receiving a tip that he might be in a Chicago suburb.
Gerardo Rafael Villasana-Serrano, aka Jerry Villasana, 46, a Mexican national, was arrested Friday by ERO Fugitive Operations Team officers. Villasana-Serrano was convicted of aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a minor in 1991 in Lake County, Illinois. ICE deported him to Mexico in March 2008 as an aggravated felon; he subsequently illegally re-entered the United States, which is a felony.
On April 7, the ICE Tip Line received information that Villasana-Serrano might be in the area of Arlington Heights, Illinois. ICE ERO officers initiated around-the-clock surveillance and were able to take Villasana-Serrano into custody April 8 at a local gas station. Villasana-Serrano had been on ERO’s most-wanted fugitives list since Nov. 13, 2015.
Villasana-Serrano remains in ICE custody awaiting removal from the United States. ICE will present this case for federal prosecution for illegal re-entry after removal. Anyone who re-enters the United States after having been deported based on an aggravated felony conviction commits a felony punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison, if convicted.
"ICE’s top priority is protecting public safety by identifying and removing dangerous fugitives from our communities," said Ricardo Wong, field office director for ERO Chicago. "A convicted child predator and one of our most wanted fugitives is now behind bars because an observant hotel manager reported the whereabouts of this individual to authorities, which then phoned in the tip to ICE."
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