An illegal migrant suspected of raping a 5-year-old girl on Long Island was nearly dumped back on the street thanks to local bail-reform and sanctuary laws — but authorities cleverly thwarted the move, sources told The Post on Friday.
The horrific alleged crime occurred after the victim’s mother asked Carlos Aguilar Reynoso — a 27-year-old Guatemalan man who allegedly illegally came into the country — to baby-sit her daughter last month, a source with knowledge of the situation said.
It’s unclear what the suspect’s relationship to the mother is, but when the girl’s mom returned home from work Feb. 1, she noticed her child acting timidly and shying away from her, the source said.
The mom, believing her daughter may have just soiled herself, ended up discovering blood in her underwear, prompting her to immediately take the child to the hospital, the source said.
The child was transferred to a specialty hospital where medical staff collected a rape kit from the tot and was forced to perform surgery on her to repair internal injuries, according to the source.
But with the investigation ongoing and the DNA from the little girl not yet processed, Reynoso could only initially be charged with endangering the welfare of a child — an offense for which prosecutors are not allowed to seek bail under New York bail-reform laws, the source said.
ICE also would have been barred from picking up the man over his illegal status on his way out of court because of the state’s sanctuary laws, which limit local authorities’ cooperation with federal immigration agents.
So quick-thinking investigators instead used their legal discretion to have cops issue the man a desk-appearance ticket, meaning he would be processed on the endangerment charge at the precinct and released.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers were then allowed to nab him on his way out of the precinct the day after the alleged rape.
On Feb. 13, the DNA results — from samples taken from the child and Reynoso — came back allegedly tying him to the horrific crime, the source said.
He was charged with first-degree rape, predatory sexual assault against a child, sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a child.
He is being held until his court appearance Monday.
He faces up to 25 years behind bars if convicted on the top count.
The man’s lawyer did not return a Post request for comment Friday.
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