Moises Domingo Rico Rosales, a Nicaraguan national who the Department of Homeland Security says illegally entered the U.S. in Arizona in 2022 before being released under the Biden administration, was arrested Tuesday after Fairfax County police linked him to two separate incidents at Wakefield Park in Annandale, Virginia.
Rico Rosales is charged with abduction of a person with intent to defile and indecent exposure, according to DHS. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has lodged a detainer asking Fairfax County officials not to release him, the department said.
DHS said Rico Rosales was previously arrested in Fairfax County in 2024 on felony drug trafficking charges but was later released after local officials refused to honor an ICE detainer. Court records show the 2024 drug charges were dropped by the office of George Soros-backed Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney Steve Descano, according to local reporting.
What the Right Is Saying
Acting Assistant Secretary of DHS Lauren Bis called the case evidence of what she described as dangerous consequences of sanctuary policies. 'This predator was RELEASED by the Biden Administration into our country in 2022,' Bis said. She called on Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger and other officials to commit to not releasing criminal illegal immigrants and instead transfer them to ICE custody.
DHS characterized Rico Rosales' prior release as a failure of open border and sanctuary policies that 'create more innocent victims.' The department cited the case as part of a broader pattern drawing scrutiny to Northern Virginia's handling of ICE detainers, including the recent Abdul Jalloh case in which an illegal immigrant with over 30 prior arrests was charged with murder in a fatal bus stop stabbing.
Republican lawmakers on a House Judiciary subcommittee have questioned Descano and Sheriff Kincaid over their handling of criminal illegal immigrants. ICE has argued that at-large arrests are more unpredictable and potentially dangerous than jail transfers to federal immigration authorities.
What the Left Is Saying
Democratic allies and immigration advocates argue that sanctuary policies are designed to ensure local law enforcement prioritizes community trust over federal immigration priorities. They note that holding inmates beyond their release dates without judicial warrants raises constitutional concerns about unlawful detention.
Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney Steve Descano, whose office dropped the 2024 drug trafficking charges against Rico Rosales, has defended his prosecution decisions in similar cases. Laura Birnbaum, chief of staff for Descano's office, told Fox News Digital that there are 'many reasons' why criminal case outcomes may differ from initial charges, including insufficient evidence, victims choosing not to continue with prosecution, or witnesses being unavailable.
Fairfax County Sheriff Stacey Kincaid's office pushed back on DHS's characterization, stating that ICE filed only an 'informal request' and 'failed to act upon' it after a court ordered Rico Rosales released. The sheriff's office emphasized there was no judicial warrant filed by ICE and said its policy is not to hold inmates past their release date unless presented with a judicial warrant or court-issued criminal detainer.
What the Numbers Show
According to DHS, Rico Rosales entered the U.S. illegally in Arizona in 2022 before being released under Biden administration policies. He was arrested on felony drug trafficking charges in Fairfax County in 2024 before those charges were dropped by Descano's office and he was released from custody after local officials declined to honor an ICE detainer.
In the separate Jalloh case, court records indicate the defendant had more than 30 prior arrests before being charged with second-degree murder in the fatal stabbing of 41-year-old Stephanie Minter at a Virginia bus stop. That case helped fuel congressional scrutiny of Fairfax County's sanctuary policies during a recent House Judiciary subcommittee hearing.
The Fairfax County Sheriff's Office standard operating procedures state that to hold a prisoner for CBP, ICE or another immigration enforcement official requires 'a criminal judicial order,' according to documentation provided to Fox News Digital.
The Bottom Line
Rico Rosales remains in custody at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center facing charges of abduction with intent to defile and indecent exposure. DHS says ICE has lodged a detainer requesting notification before his release, though the sheriff's office said it does not currently have an ICE detainer on file for this case.
The arrest draws renewed attention to ongoing legal disputes over whether local jurisdictions must honor immigration detainers without judicial warrants. Sheriff Kincaid's office maintains it does 'not obstruct or prevent ICE from acting on their civil detainers' when federal officials file proper documentation and respond in time. The case is expected to feature in continued congressional scrutiny of Northern Virginia sanctuary policies.