Undocumented immigrant arrested for alleged kidnapping and sexual assault of 11-year-old girl

LAKE WORTH, Fla. (WPEC) — A 20-year-old undocumented immigrant was arrested for allegedly grabbing and sexually assaulting an 11-year-old girl on the street outside her Florida home.

According to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, Marvin Dionel Perez Lopez grabbed the 11-year-old by the hand and forced her into his van, where he began attacking her.

As the child’s mother went to look for the girl, she spotted the van not far from her apartment building, where the victim and Lopez both lived, officers noted. Officials said the mother discovered them inside and began banging on the door and screaming.

According to officers, Lopez jumped out of the van and ran away. The victim’s mother then went to Lopez’s apartment and encountered his brother, who called Lopez and told him to come home.

Officers said the mother was waiting to confront him. Lopez begged her for forgiveness, but the mother reportedly told officers there was no way she could do that. Then she called the police.

Investigators interviewed the victim, who told officers that Lopez forced himself on her after she repeatedly resisted his advances. Things escalated until Lopez allegedly raped her.

On May 3, officers arrived at the apartment to speak with Lopez. When officers knocked on the door, they noticed Lopez climb out a back window, start running and flee into an alley. After searching in vain for Lopez, several officers and a K-9 unit interviewed his brother, who said Lopez had fled because of what happened to the girl next door, the PBSO report said.

The sheriff’s office confirmed Lopez’s arrest the next day, adding that he was an illegal immigrant from Guatemala. An immigration court date is reportedly scheduled for 2027.

Lopez was arrested on charges of kidnapping for the purpose of sexually assaulting a minor, sexual assault of a victim under the age of 12 and resisting an officer without violence. He is being held without bond.