ICE Arrests 4 Convicted Child Sex Offenders In New Jersey

NEWARK, NJ — Federal ICE agents in New Jersey recently arrested four child sex offenders who immigrated to the country illegally, authorities say.

Officials with Homeland Security Investigations and ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations-Newark announced the arrests on Thursday evening.

Daniel Garcia Cruz, a 35-year-old Mexican national, was arrested in Hoboken on Aug. 3. He was sentenced to three years of probation after being convicted for criminal sexual contact in March 2023.

Manuel Gregorio Loja Loja and Leonidas Rivera Gonzalez were arrested on July 24. Loja, 36, an Ecuadorian national, was sentenced to a three-year term of probation in June 2024 for false imprisonment and cruelty and neglect of children. Rivera, 40, a Salvadorian national, was sentenced to parole supervision for life after being found guilty of endangering-sexual conduct with child by a non-caretaker in July 2023.

Jeferson Isaac Flores Pineda, a 19-year-old Honduran national, was arrested on July 31 in West New York. Flores was charged with aggravated sexual assault and false imprisonment in June 2022. He was convicted of false imprisonment in December 2023.

Each of the four arrestees were previously required to register as sex offenders in the state of New Jersey. They are being held in ICE custody pending deportation proceedings, authorities said.

PREVIOUS ARRESTS

In July, the ICE Newark office released details about four other arrests involving sex crimes against children.

Those arrests included:

• Personnel with ICE HSI and ERO Newark arrested Gerson Jose Saenz Umana, a 27-year-old El Salvadorian national, and Javier Garcia Nicolasa, a 42-year-old Mexican national, on July 21. Garcia Nicolasa was convicted on Dec. 1, 2023, of endangering sexual conduct with a child by caretaker. He was sentenced to three years in prison. He entered the U.S. on an unknown date and through and unknown location. Umana is a registered sex offender with a sealed criminal history that involves the exploitation of a child, according to ICE.
• On July 17, HSI and ERO Newark personnel arrested Juan Villatoro Valle, from El Salvador, and Reyes Peralta-Salazar, from Mexico. Villatoro Valle, age 45, was convicted on Aug. 2, 2019, of sexual assault involving a victim under the age of 13, aggravated criminal sexual assault, and endangering with sexual conduct. He was sentenced to five years in prison. Villatoro Valle entered the U.S. without inspection sometime before 2000. He was granted Temporary Protected Status in 2006, but his application for permanent residency was denied in 2009. Reyes Peralta-Salazar, age 38, was arrested on Sept. 14, 2023, for criminal sexual conduct and endangering – sexual conduct with child. He was sentenced to 180 days in jail. Peralta-Salazar entered the U.S. without inspection at an unknown date, according to ICE.

All four arrestees were required to register as sex offenders in the state of New Jersey, authorities said.

ICE has also made other recent arrests involving alleged sex crimes in the Newark area.

In March 2025, a Hungarian man accused of statutory rape was apprehended at Newark Airport after he allegedly tried to flee the United States. See Related: ICE Arrests Accused Child Rapist At Newark Airport

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