A convicted child sex offender with three prior deportations was arrested this week in San Diego by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said Thursday.
Ezequiel Cruz Rodriguez, a Mexican national, was convicted in 1996 of committing a lewd act on a child under age 14, according to San Diego Superior Court records.
His criminal history also includes prior charges of sexual battery, illegal possession of a firearm, driving under the influence and robbery, according to federal officials and court records.
Cruz Rodriguez was arrested Tuesday at a home where he was living with his wife, who runs an in-home daycare there, Patrick Divver, the field office director of ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations in San Diego, said in a video posted on the social media platform X.
“This arrest sends a clear message: ICE San Diego will not tolerate violent criminals who repeatedly violate our laws and endanger our communities,” Divver said in a statement.
“This individual is a dangerous predator with a history of heinous crimes, including preying on children, and his presence in a home daycare setting is absolutely abhorrent and unacceptable,” he added. “ICE will continue to use every tool at its disposal to remove threats like this from our streets and ensure they face the full weight of justice.”
ICE declined to release the name of the daycare, but NBC San Diego identified it in a news report as Little Hands Academy Family Child Care in Rolando. Calls to the daycare went unanswered.
Theresa Miller, a spokesperson for the California Department of Social Services, said that the daycare is currently under investigation. DHS said that Cruz Rodriguez’s wife, a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipient, operated the facility.
The daycare passed an inspection in 2023, according to state records. But during that visit, the operator was reminded that all adults “living or working in the home, including employees and volunteers, must obtain a criminal record clearance or exemption” before they are allowed to be present in the home, according to the evaluation report.
Cruz Rodriguez is facing a charge of being a deported alien in the United States, according to federal court records. His lawyer did not respond to email requests for comment.
Cruz Rodriguez was first removed in August 1996 and then again in October 2003 and December 2012. He then illegally returned to the country at an unknown date, officials said.
Federal court records from 1998 state that Cruz Rodriguez was a registered sex offender and documented gang member at the time. He is not listed in the current registered sex offender database.
Staff writer Caleb Lunetta contributed to this report.
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