BOSTON — Federal immigration officers have arrested a Dominican national who was convicted in 2007 of brutally killing his pregnant girlfriend in Lawrence as her 5-year-old son watched.
Cesar Augusto Polanco, 59, was arrested on Jan. 24 at the Massachusetts Correctional Institution in Norfolk after he was released from state custody, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said in a statement this week. He remains in federal custody pending removal proceedings.
Polanco was granted parole in a Dec. 4 decision by the state’s Parole Board.
In March 2007, Polanco pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death of 25-year-old Judith Guevara, his pregnant girlfriend at the time. He was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole, according to the Parole Board’s decision in December.
On Oct. 26 2006, Polanco, then 41, called Lawrence Police and told them that he had killed Guevara, with whom he lived in an apartment in Lawrence along with their 16-month daughter and Guevara’s 5-year-old son from a previous relationship.
Guevara was one month pregnant. That evening, Polanco and Guevara “argued about him going out to drink,” the Parole Board decision states.
The argument turned physical, and Polanco beat Guevara to death. Her 5-year-old son witnessed the killing, the decision states.
Guevara suffered “massive facial injuries” and was later pronounced dead at the hospital. Her cause of death was homicide by blunt force trauma and aspiration of blood, officials said.
“Cesar Augusto Polanco came to this country lawfully; however, his horrendous actions have deemed him a significant threat to the residents here,” Acting ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Boston Field Office Director Patricia Hyde said in a statement.
“We will not allow our communities to be subjected to the danger posed by violent alien offenders,” Hyde said. “ICE ERO Boston will continue to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing these criminals from New England.”
Polanco lawfully entered the United States at John F. Kennedy International Airport March 18, 1990 and later violated the terms of his admission, Hyde said.
ICE issued an immigration detainer against Polanco June 20, 2013 with the Massachusetts Correctional Institution.
ICE served Polanco with a notice to appear before a Department of Justice immigration judge on Dec. 20, 2013, and he was ordered removed from the U.S. to the Dominican Republic on June 25, 2014.
The Massachusetts Correctional Institution honored the immigration detainer and informed ICE Boston of Polanco’s recent release, Hyde said.
“ICE recognizes the importance of our relationships with state and local law enforcement partners, and we will continue to share information and coordinate operations with those partners in a way that ensures safety within our community,” Hyde said.
“As a result of this partnership, the Massachusetts Correctional Institution contacted ICE and allowed for a safe transfer of a violent criminal,” Hyde said. “In doing so, they enabled us to make the arrest in the safety of a jail cell rather than sending a team of officers into the community to make a potentially dangerous arrest.”
Anyone with information regarding child sex offenders, crimes or suspicious activity can report it by calling the ICE Tip Line at 866-347-2423 or completing the online tip form.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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