HSI Investigation Leads to Charges of Child Sexual Exploitation Against Illegal Alien from Mexico

 

The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the following statement after an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) resulted in charges of child sexual exploitation and a firearms offense against a criminal illegal alien from Mexico.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina announced in July that Francisco Rosales Ortiz, a criminal illegal alien from Mexico, was indicted by a federal grand jury on 10 COUNTS of production of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), possession and access with intent to view CSAM, and unlawful possession of a firearm by an alien.

The indictment claims that, between June 2025 and March 2026, Ortiz used a child to engage in sexually explicit conduct on multiple occasions, for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of the abuse. During that time, Ortiz illegally possessed three firearms despite being in the United States illegally. Ortiz’s alleged crimes occurred in Gaston County, North Carolina. Ortiz was arrested by the Gastonia Police Department on April 2, 2026, and was transferred to the custody of the United States Marshals Service on August 3.

“Thanks to the hard work of the men and women of HSI, this criminal illegal alien from Mexico is off our streets,” said DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin. “He has now been charged with producing child pornography and possession of a firearm by an illegal alien. I want to thank our partners at the Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for their work in prosecuting this disgusting individual. Once he faces justice for his crimes, we will make sure he is removed from our country and can no longer prey on innocent children in America ever again.”

“Homeland Security Investigations is committed to protecting our communities from those who seek to exploit the most vulnerable among us—our children. HSI will continue to work tirelessly with our law enforcement partners to investigate and bring to justice individuals who commit these heinous crimes,” said Mark M. Zito, Special Agent in Charge of HSI Carolinas. “We will use every tool at our disposal to ensure that offenders are held accountable and that our neighborhoods remain safe places for children to grow and thrive.”

“We are not going to stand by while illegal aliens come to our country and exploit our children,” said U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson. “There are plenty of people in line to legally come to the United States. They should not be forced to the back of the line for someone like Ortiz, who is charged with sexually abusing a child and illegally possessing firearms.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Cervantes of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte is prosecuting the case.

Ortiz claims to have illegally entered the United States at an unknown location in 2005.