Deep in the sanctuary state of Virginia, a local sheriff’s office faced a problem.
It had a suspect in the murder and sexual battery of a 2-year-old girl. But he was an illegal immigrant who might give them the slip if they did not act fast.
And so the office disregarded Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s policies and contacted U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to lend a hand.
The result? Raul Genesis Ortiz Moran, a 29-year-old criminal illegal alien, has been charged in the toddler’s death, according to a Department of Homeland Security news release.
The Louisa County Sheriff’s Department had arrested Moran, a Mexican national, after his girlfriend’s toddler died in early July.
BREAKING: DHS confirms that the suspect charged with sexually assaulting and murdering a 2-year-old girl in Louisa County, VA earlier this month is an illegal alien from Mexico. ICE filed a detainer on Raul Genesis Ortiz Moran with local law enforcement & they honored the… pic.twitter.com/gvj1FgWmFO
— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) July 22, 2026
Lt. Chuck Lowe of the Louisa County Sheriff’s Office said his office contacted ICE to detain Moran, according to WWBT-TV.
“We were having a hard time getting a warrant — it was way too early — so we had to call ICE to detain him,” Lowe said.
Lowe said it was either cooperate or risk losing the suspect.
“There was that 24-hour period of time where we had to be very, very careful,” Lowe said, according to WWBT. “We were definitely concerned he was just gonna get up and leave and we wouldn’t find him again.”
Moran is now charged with second-degree murder and aggravated sexual assault, the station reported.
“This monster sexually assaulted and murdered a 2-year-old girl in Virginia,” Assistant DHS Secretary Lauren Bis said in the DHS release, specifically attacking Spanberger’s “sanctuary policies” she announced after taking office in January, succeeding Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin.
Those policies effectively made the Old Dominion a sanctuary state for illegal aliens — and Louisa County is near its geographic center.
“Thanks to the cooperation of our local law enforcement partners, this killer is off the streets and will face justice for his crimes. This horrific tragedy was completely avoidable, because this illegal alien should have never been in our country. Governor Spanberger’s sanctuary policies have made Virginia a hotbed for illegal alien crime,” Bis said
The release said it is not known where or when Moran illegally entered the United States.
The release noted that Spanberger banned cooperation between state law enforcement and ICE and wiped away partnerships between local authorities and ICE.
Would you like to see a law that punishes pro-sanctuary office holders every time an illegal in their sanctuary city or state breaks the law?
The two-week investigation into the 2-year-old’s death began when the child’s mother, Moran’s girlfriend, brought the child to the Goochland County Sheriff’s Office seeking help, according to The Roanoke Times. Moran said he is not the child’s father.
Deputies tried to save the child, but she died after being taken to St. Mary’s Hospital in Richmond.
Love said that it took two weeks to gather forensic evidence needed to issue a warrant to arrest Moran.
Two days before the girl died, Moran was charged with driving without a license, a repeated offense, The Roanoke Times reported. He had two previous convictions for driving without a license, according to the newspaper.
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