ICE arrests convicted child sex offender in Suffolk County, officials say

Federal immigration agents arrested Jose Fuentes-Saravia, a Salvadoran national convicted in Suffolk County of sexual abuse involving a child younger than 11, after moving to enforce a final order of removal. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security described him as a criminal noncitizen from El Salvador and said the Suffolk County case involved sexual contact with an individual under 11.

The arrest was folded into a broader ICE New York City enforcement action announced May 21, 2026, that focused on people officials said had been convicted of some of the most serious offenses in the country. The agency said that roundup included people convicted of murder, rape, child sex abuse, forcible touching and other violent crimes.

News 12 reported May 22 that ICE officials apprehended Fuentes-Saravia on Wednesday and said he was in the country illegally. The reporting and the federal release both tied his arrest to the Suffolk County conviction and the removal order, showing how a local sex-abuse case can later become part of a federal deportation effort.

ICE’s public statement did not identify the date of the Suffolk County conviction or the specific court that heard the case. It also did not include a response from Fuentes-Saravia’s defense, any victim representative or Suffolk County officials.

The agency’s announcement also named Vicente Mejia-Marquez, another El Salvadoran national convicted in Suffolk County of rape involving a person under 17. Together, the cases show Suffolk County appearing in ICE’s New York City enforcement actions as the agency targets noncitizens it says were convicted of violent and sex offenses and are subject to removal from the United States.