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U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has apprehended an immigrant living in the country illegally, accused of abducting a 4-year-old girl from a laundromat in New York, as reported by a local news outlet.
The Department of Homeland Security confirmed to the New York Post that Carlos Corte-Corte, a 38-year-old Ecuadorian national, was detained by ICE on March 31. He was placed in removal proceedings following the incident that occurred on March 28 at the Laundry Kingdom in Patchogue.
“This individual, who has already been deported three times, allegedly kidnapped an innocent child from a Long Island laundromat,” stated Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis. She criticized local officials, claiming, “New York’s sanctuary policies let this kidnapper roam free, endangering more children by releasing him from jail instead of collaborating with ICE.”
Bis further emphasized, “The political stance of sanctuary cities often places public safety at risk. This approach can lead to increased crime and more victims.”
The incident at the Laundry Kingdom in Patchogue, New York, has sparked significant concern, as the laundromat was the scene of this alarming alleged kidnapping. (Image: Google Maps)
The Suffolk County Police Department said that, “While a woman was with her two children at a laundromat, located at 138 East Main St., Carlos-Corte, who was unknown to the woman, led her 4-year-old daughter out the back exit of the laundromat, at 12:08 p.m.” on March 28.
“Her mother reported her missing, and patrol officers responded to the scene, where they reviewed surveillance video and began canvassing the area. During the search, the mother located her daughter in the children’s play area of the Patchogue-Medford Library, located at 54-60 East Main St. A patrol officer then located Corte near the laundromat and took him into custody,” police added.
Corte-Corte was charged with second-degree kidnapping and endangering the welfare of a child, police said.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents walk down a street during a multi-agency targeted enforcement operation in Chicago, Illinois, in January 2025. The agency rearrested Corte-Corte on March 31, according to the New York Post. (Christopher Dilts / Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The day after his arrest, a Suffolk County district judge freed Corte-Corte on supervised release with a GPS monitor, the New York Post reported.
The newspaper said Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney disagreed with the judge’s decision and added that, “I think if you look at the facts of the case, clearly they’re concerning.”
“He thought the girl lived alone without parents,” the New York Post quoted Corte-Corte’s public defender as saying in court. “He took her to the library and told an employee there as such, but there was a language barrier. It seems to be a mistake.”
A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer’s badge and gear. (Michael Siluk/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Fox News Digital has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for further comment.