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ICE Arrests Honduran Man Accused of Child Sex Crimes After Fairfax County Ignored Detainer
Oscar Evaristo Nunez, a Honduran national charged with aggravated sexual battery involving children, was rearrested by ICE after Fairfax County released him without honoring a federal immigration detainer, DHS said.
Federal immigration agents have rearrested a Honduran man accused of child sex crimes after local authorities in Fairfax County, Virginia, released him from custody without honoring an immigration detainer, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement took Oscar Evaristo Nunez into custody on Sept. 15 during a targeted enforcement operation, DHS announced Wednesday. Nunez had initially been arrested on Aug. 27, 2025, on charges of aggravated sexual battery involving children and offenses related to the non-consensual filming of an undressed minor.
ICE lodged a detainer with the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center two days after that arrest, asking local officials to hold Nunez until federal agents could take him into custody. According to DHS, the county did not honor the request and released Nunez without notifying the agency.
The case has become the latest flashpoint between the Trump administration and Virginia officials over cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said in a news release that ICE had to step in after local authorities declined to act.
«Another criminal illegal alien has been taken off the streets by the brave men and women of ICE with no help from sanctuary politicians in Fairfax County,» Mullin said. «This illegal alien from Honduras had been arrested for child sex crimes in August last year, but Fairfax County refused to honor ICE's detainer and let this creep back out onto the streets.»
Mullin added that ICE «did the job that these heartless sanctuary politicians won't do: enforce the law and protect American lives.» The department called on Gov. Abigail Spanberger and other Virginia officials to stop what it described as putting the needs of illegal aliens over public safety.
Spanberger, a Democrat, was not governor at the time of Nunez's arrest or when ICE filed the detainer in August 2025. She took office in January 2026. Since becoming governor, she has moved Virginia away from some forms of state participation in federal immigration enforcement, including directing state agencies to terminate agreements with ICE under the federal 287(g) program.
A representative for Fairfax County did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
According to DHS, Nunez illegally entered the United States near Arizona around September 2003. He remains in ICE custody pending immigration proceedings.
The arrest highlights a continuing dispute over so-called sanctuary policies, under which some local jurisdictions limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities. Supporters of such policies argue they encourage residents to report crimes without fear of deportation, while critics contend they allow dangerous individuals to remain in communities.
Virginia's 287(g) agreements had allowed state and local law enforcement to work with ICE on identifying and holding individuals subject to deportation. Spanberger's decision to terminate those agreements marked a shift in the state's approach to immigration enforcement, drawing criticism from federal officials and praise from immigrant advocacy groups.
DHS has repeatedly pointed to cases in Fairfax County in recent months as evidence of what it calls a refusal by local officials to cooperate with federal detainers. The department said Nunez's case followed a similar pattern, with local authorities releasing him despite the pending federal request.
ICE did not provide additional details about the circumstances of Nunez's arrest or the charges against him. The agency said he remains in federal custody while his immigration case proceeds.
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