Lawmakers want answers after soccer coach accused of recording child rapes admits being illegal alien
Tennessee Republican lawmakers want an explanation from the Department of Homeland Security after a Volunteer State soccer coach accused of recording himself raping unconscious young boys admitted to federal law enforcement last week that he was in the US illegally.
Camilo Hurtado Campos — who confessed to having drugged and sexually assaulted 10 boys between the ages of 9 and 17 years old — made the acknowledgment to DHS agents in an interview, a spokesman for the Franklin Police Department said last week.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and other Tennessee GOP legislators sent a letter to DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Monday asking whether his department knew of Campos’ immigration status or initiated enforcement actions against him in the past.
“We write to express our disgust with this administration’s complete failure to secure our border and enforce the rule of law, the effects of which are impacting communities and families across the country,” the group of eight said.
“President Biden’s decision to allow over 1.5 million ‘gotaways’ to enter the country without consequence is a blatant dereliction of duty, particularly because we know that this group of migrants who evade our border patrol agents often have criminal records and are potentially the most dangerous.”
The Tennessee delegation cited reports that detectives had also uncovered hundreds of videos and photos documenting the “unconscionable abuse” and that Campos evaded deportation while living in the US for 20 years — despite being charged with public intoxication and driving without a license.
“Tennesseans deserve to know why DHS permitted a criminal to live in their community for decades and abuse their children after entering the country illegally,” Blackburn told The Post. “It is time to secure the southern border, deport criminal illegal aliens, and ensure our communities are safe. Until we get this crisis under control, every town is a border town, and every state is a border state.”
Campos, 63, was arrested on June 23, one day after Marco’s Pizza employee Joshua Larue discovered the horrendous videos on a cell phone that was handed over by a patron who had found it in the bathroom.
On the day of Campos’ arrest, another employee took a photo of his license plate when the suspect returned to retrieve the phone, court records show.
Franklin police have identified at least three of the 10 victims whom Campos sexually assaulted. Five other victims have also come forward with allegations that Lt. Charles Warner previously told The Post they “did not know about.”
Several children were allegedly lured back to Campos’ home under the pretext of being recruited to play on his team before being drugged and raped.
Campos told police that the cell phone belonged to him and acknowledged “knowing the photographic images was (sic) on that phone,” according to an affidavit. He is currently being held on charges of child rape and sexual exploitation of a minor, with the expectation of further charges.
The earliest of his sex assault charges stretches back to an incident with a 12-year-old boy in 2020, the affidavit also said. His first court date is set for July 25.
“ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations protects the homeland through the arrest and removal of those who undermine the safety of our communities and the integrity of our immigration laws,” an Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman told The Post in a statement. “On July 10, we issued an immigration detainer for Camilo Hurtado Campos following his arrest by the Franklin, Tennessee Police Department.”
A detainer orders state or local law enforcement to hold?noncitizens for 48 hours before ICE can assume custody. Campos was not processed by an immigration official when he entered the US, a source familiar with his?case said.
