A Haitian man accused charged with raping a 15-year-old at a hotel that serves as an emergency shelter for migrant families in Rockland, Massachusetts, appeared in court on Thursday, his first appearance since he was arrested by federal immigration officials outside his home in Brockton.
Cory B. Alvarez is accused of the sexual assault of the teen at the Comfort Inn on Hingham Street on March 13, the Plymouth County District Attorney's Office said. A grand jury indicted him on a charge of aggravated rape of a child with 10-year age difference and rape of a child by force. The Comfort Inn was part of a government program to help house migrant families, prosecutors said at a previous court appearance.
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Resources for victims of sexual assault are available through the National Sexual Violence Resources Center and the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 800-656-4673, and Massachusetts provides this list of statewide and resources for sexual assault survivors.
On Thursday, Alvarez appeared in Brockton Superior Court - a hearing that was delayed from Aug. 13 due to his arrest by federal immigration officials. The Commonwealth had previously filed a motion for this defendant to provide his DNA
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With the help of an interpreter, the defendant heard the details of the district attorney's office's motion to request his DNA.
The sample was taken immediately after the hearing by sheriff's office personnel present in court. Defense attorney Brian Kelley, who did not object to the move, explained the reason behind the decision.
"If it shows that it is not his DNA then we are going to be in a better position to try to persuade hopefully the state and the federal government that he should be released pending the case and the prosecution of the case," Kelley said.
Immigration attorney Carmen Bello said in many cases involving immigration issues, defendants never complete their criminal cases in the states because they find themselves deported. This case could be different.
"What I see is that it is a case of great interest in public safety, which is why ICE is going to cooperate in everything," Bello told Telemundo Nueva Inglaterra in Spanish.
A spokesperson for the federal immigration agency ICE today indicated that the right to due process will be respected in Alvarez's case, but that he will remain detained until his hearing in immigration court.
Alvarez's pretrial hearing was scheduled for Sept. 13. The prosecutor's office requested a habeas corpus so that the suspect who remains in the custody of immigration authorities be allowed to appear at that hearing.
Massachusetts has been working to house an influx of migrants that's strained the state's shelter system.
The system is currently at capacity with 7,500 families, which is what Healey implemented last year with hundreds more on a waiting list.
