Court-Ordered Release, Then a Minnesota Rape Charge

Hands in suit with one handcuff open on wooden table — Photo: Ikebana Art-studio / Shutterstock

Federal immigration authorities say a Honduran national charged with raping a Minnesota woman was released from custody by court order two months before the alleged attack.

Story Snapshot

Prosecutors charged Marcotulio Melendez Diaz with first-degree criminal sexual conduct in Minnesota after his August release from immigration custody.
A federal judge in Texas granted his habeas petition and ordered his release while immigration matters were pending, according to multiple reports.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) argues continued detention likely would have prevented the alleged offense.
Researchers broadly find immigration does not raise crime rates overall, even as single cases fuel fierce policy debates.

What Prosecutors Say Happened

Ramsey County authorities charged Marcotulio Melendez Diaz, age 42 and a Honduran national, with first-degree criminal sexual conduct tied to an October 11 incident in Mounds View, Minnesota. Reports describe a home invasion assault, with charging documents alleging force and repeated sexual assault. ICE officials told Fox News that Diaz had been in federal custody earlier this year and was released in August. They contend his continued detention would have likely stopped the alleged attack. Allegations remain subject to proof in court.

Local watchdog reporting traces Diaz’s path to Minnesota law enforcement contact in January during an ICE surge operation in the Twin Cities region. He was transferred to a federal detention facility in Texas as immigration proceedings moved forward. After his release in August, he returned to Minnesota. The criminal complaint filed by county prosecutors outlines the events that led to his arrest and charge following the October 11 report. Court proceedings in Minnesota will determine guilt or innocence.

How a Federal Court Order Led to Release

Media accounts identify United States District Judge Orlando L. Garcia of the Western District of Texas as the judge who granted Diaz’s habeas petition and ordered his August 7 release on due process grounds while immigration matters were pending. Habeas petitions challenge the legality or length of detention. Such rulings require federal agencies to release a person if the court finds the custody violates the law or constitutional protections. After the order, Diaz left federal custody and later returned to Minnesota.

Immigration custody often runs in parallel with separate criminal processes. A release from immigration detention does not dismiss prior immigration rulings; it changes where a person awaits further action. ICE asserts that keeping Diaz detained would have prevented the Minnesota offense now charged. Critics of the decision argue the system failed a victim. Supporters of due process stress that courts must apply the law the same way to all people in custody, citizen or not.

Why One Case Fuels a Bigger Policy Fight

This case taps into a long fight over how to balance due process, detention limits, community safety, and local control. Single, tragic cases can drive major policy shifts, even when broad data show a different pattern overall. Multiple studies find immigrants, including those without legal status, are less likely to be arrested or incarcerated than people born in the United States, and that higher immigrant shares often track with lower crime rates. Policymakers still must plan for outliers that cause real harm.

EXCLUSIVE: A Honduran illegal immigrant allegedly raped a Minnesota woman just TWO DAYS after his deportation order became final, months after a Clinton-appointed federal judge ordered his release from ICE custody.

According to federal immigration officials, 42-year-old… pic.twitter.com/K0BWsqwShi

— Fox News (@FoxNews) November 3, 2026

For many Americans, this case reads as another sign that the system protects itself first. The judge followed due process; ICE followed custody rules; local police and prosecutors followed state law. Yet a woman is left to pick up the pieces. People on the right and left see the same loop: agencies pass the buck, courts move slowly, and the public pays the price. Fixing this means tighter handoffs between agencies, clearer detention timelines, and faster tracking when custody shifts across state lines.