ICE agencies in Newark arrest 4 alleged child predators
NEWARK, N.J. (PIX11) -- Four illegally present individuals accused of being child sex offenders have been apprehended by ICE agencies in Newark, the Department of Homeland Security announced Thursday.
All of the individuals below were required to register as sex offenders in New Jersey and are currently being held in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.
A Mexican national, Daniel Garcia Cruz, 35, was arrested in Hoboken on Aug. 3. Garcia was previously sentenced to three years of probation after being convicted of criminal sexual contact on March 24, 2023.
An Ecuadorian national, Manuel Gregorio Loja Loja, 36, was arrested in Newark on July 24. Loja was then sentenced to a three-year term of probation for false imprisonment and cruelty and neglect of children.
A Salvadoran national, Leonidas Rivera Gonzalez, 40, was arrested in Newark on July 24. Rivera was previously sentenced to parole supervision for life after being found guilty of endangering-sexual conduct with a child by a non-caretaker on July 14, 2023.
A Honduran national, Jeferson Isaac Flores Pineda, 19, was arrested in Newark on July 31 in West New York, New Jersey. Flores was previously charged with aggravated sexual assault and false imprisonment on June 6, 2022. He was convicted of false imprisonment on Dec. 1, 2023.
Officials say Garcia, Loja, and Rivera entered the United States without inspection or parole from an immigration officer.
Officials add that Flores was encountered in Hildalgo, Texas, by the United States Border Patrol on April 14, 2019, and was initially determined to be in the U.S. illegally; however, an immigration judge in Newark had terminated his immigration case in June 2022.
Ben Mitchell is a digital content producer from Vermont who has covered both local and international news since 2021. He joined PIX11 in 2024. See more of his work here.