10
Loading video...
By Billal Rahman
Immigration Reporter
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) told Newsweek it plans to seek the removal of a Massachusetts high school teacher facing multiple child rape charges after lodging an immigration detainer following his arrest.
ICE said it filed the detainer request with the Lowell Police Department on July 22 for Patrick Akpore Nsumei, 54, who has been charged with aggravated rape of a child, rape of a child with force, and indecent assault and battery on a child under 14.
A detainer is a request by federal immigration authorities that a local law enforcement agency notify ICE before releasing a person from custody or hold the person for a limited period so ICE can take custody.
Read More on News
"ICE will assume custody pending his criminal proceedings with the state," an ICE spokesperson said in a statement to Newsweek.
"Under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, criminal illegal aliens are not welcome in the U.S. ICE is working diligently to remove these violent, dangerous offenders from our communities," the spokesperson added.
Newsweek has contacted Boston Public Schools and the man's attorney for comment.
...
Nsumei is being held without bail at the Billerica House of Correction after Lowell District Court Judge John Coffey ruled during a July 31 dangerousness hearing that he posed a threat to public safety. He was ordered held for up to 120 days while the criminal case proceeds.
Prosecutor Sheehan McCarthy told the court that the alleged victim reported the abuse to Lowell police on June 27. Prosecutors allege the abuse occurred repeatedly between 2017 and 2021 and argued that Nsumei poses a danger to the community.
Nsumei's attorney, Thomas Mixon, disputed the allegations and argued there was no physical evidence corroborating them, according to The Boston Herald.
The Boston Herald reported that Nsumei worked as a science teacher at a Boston public high school. However, as of Sunday, his name and photograph no longer appeared on the school's staff webpage.
The allegations do not involve a Boston Public Schools student, according to The Boston Herald. The alleged victim is not connected to the district, the outlet reported.
The district has not publicly said whether Nsumei remains employed or has been placed on leave.
The aggravated rape of a child charge carries a potential sentence of life in prison, with eligibility for parole after 10 years. Nsumei is scheduled to return to court September 1 for a probable cause hearing, according to The Boston Herald.
The case comes as ICE has regularly pointed to arrests, convictions and criminal allegations involving migrants as it promotes the Trump administration's mass deportation program. Agency officials have repeatedly said enforcement efforts are focused on what they describe as "the worst of the worst," highlighting cases involving serious violent and sexual crime allegations as evidence of a public safety mission.
Contact Newsweek editors for this story: Matthew Robinson and Robert Greenall
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines