Guatemalan illegal immigrant arrested, charged with kidnapping, sexual assault of a minor in Florida

An illegal immigrant from Guatemala was apprehended in Florida  allegedly kidnapping and sexually assaulting a minor. 

Marvin Perez Lopez was arrested on Saturday by the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. Upon investigating him, law enforcement learned that Lopez left Guatemala in January, crossed the US-Mexico border illegally, and subsequently surrendered himself to Border Patrol agents. 

Following his apprehension, Lopez was provided with a court date scheduled for the year 2027 and was then released. 

Upon his release, Lopez made his way to Florida. He is now being held in the Palm Beach County Jail without bond.

This incident comes in the wake of a similar case reported a few months ago, where three illegal immigrants from Guatemala were accused of sexually assaulting a woman in Palm Beach, as reported by NBC Miami.

Last February, both Guatemala and Mexico previously pledged to the US to increase cooperation in addressing the high levels of illegal migration from these countries into the US.

A joint statement released by the three countries said that they “committed to establish an operationally focused trilateral working group which will work to improve security, law enforcement, processes, and infrastructure along their international borders," according to a report by CNN.

“Law enforcement authorities from the three countries will work together to identify security gaps, share information, and develop coordinated operational plans,” the statement said. “This effort will build on and expand existing partnerships to address shared challenges at our borders.”