The Nicaraguan migrant accused of raping a woman this week near a popular beach boardwalk in Brooklyn had an ICE detainer placed on him after he previously was arrested for sexual assault, but he managed to walk free after striking a deal with local prosecutors, a report says.
Daniel Davon-Bonilla, 24, had been out on the streets since June when he was arrested late Sunday night for the alleged attack in Coney Island, according to the New York Post. The Big Apple is a sanctuary city, meaning local law enforcement generally does not cooperate with ICE detainers, which are requests that the agency be notified before the immigrant is released from custody and to keep them in custody until ICE can take custody of them.
“Laws do not allow us to coordinate with ICE. That’s the law. And, you know, I’m not happy about that,” New York City Mayor Eric Adams told reporters Tuesday when asked about Davon-Bonilla’s detainer. “You know, and I think he’s the poster child of what’s wrong, with, not doing that coordination. It’s clear that he does not deserve to be in our city.”
“This is the challenge that we’re facing,” Adams added. “The overwhelming number of migrants and asylum seekers that are here — they’re trying to do the next thing and take a step onto their next journey. But you do have that small number that’s problematic.”
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Sources told the New York Post that an ICE detainer was issued for Davon-Bonilla after he was arrested for sexually assaulting a woman at a hotel-turned-migrant shelter in another part of Brooklyn in April 2023.
Davon-Bonilla later pleaded guilty to assault in the second degree and served time at New York City’s notorious Rikers Island prison complex before being released on June 24, according to WABC.
“After he spent over a year in jail and following the victim’s request not to testify in any court proceedings, this defendant was offered a plea of time served and court-managed programming,” WABC quoted prosecutors as saying.
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The Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office then told the New York Post that “Our office is generally unaware of defendants’ immigration status and we don’t contact ICE after pleas.”
New York City Councilman Bob Holden, a Democrat who represents part of the Queens borough, said to the newspaper that Davon-Bonilla’s alleged rape this week is a “direct result of City Hall’s refusal to act and work with ICE to keep our communities safe, leaving us vulnerable to those who should have been deported.
“Instead of being turned over to ICE after being arrested, convicted, and sentenced, this sicko was released back onto the streets, only to commit the same vile sexual assault again,” Holden added.
Davon-Bonilla, who the New York City Police Department says is now facing charges including first-degree rape and sexual abuse in connection to the alleged attack Sunday night in Coney Island, is being held without bail after pleading not guilty, according to reports.
Fox News’ Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
