A Honduran national released from ICE custody by a federal judge in August has been charged with raping a woman inside her Mounds View, Minnesota home two months later, immigration authorities told Fox News.
Marcotulio Melendez Diaz, 42, was working as a handyman at the woman’s home on Oct. 11 when he allegedly overpowered her and raped her repeatedly against her will. The attack was caught on the victim’s indoor surveillance camera, officials said.
ICE is placing the blame squarely on U.S. District Judge Orlando L. Garcia, a Clinton appointee sitting in the Western District of Texas, who ordered Melendez Diaz released from detention in August after granting his habeas petition on due process grounds. Garcia found the man’s detention had been unlawful or unreasonably prolonged. The ruling let him return to Minnesota.
“This is what happens when activist judges side with criminal illegal aliens over Americans,” ICE said in a statement. “ICE arrested him, and an immigration judge ordered his deportation. But a Clinton-appointed federal judge ordered him RELEASED.”
“And now an American woman has suffered a horrific crime that could have been PREVENTED.”
According to ICE sources, Melendez Diaz was first caught crossing the southern border and released by the Biden administration in April 2024. He was arrested a second time in Minnesota in January 2026 during Operation Metro Surge and sent to ICE detention in Texas.
On March 30, an immigration judge ordered him deported. He appealed. While that appeal was pending, Garcia stepped in and ordered his release from custody.
On Oct. 9, the Board of Immigration Appeals rejected his appeal and issued a final deportation order. Two days later, he was charged with rape.
Melendez Diaz faces a felony charge of first-degree criminal sexual penetration involving coercion. He remains in custody and faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the Sexual Assault Hotline at 800-656-HOPE (800-656-4673).
