Dominican Republic authorities have initiated an investigation into an accusation involving the alleged rape of a 14-year-old girl by an immigration officer, stated a report published by Jurist.
The complaint was lodged earlier this week by Santiago Molina, a human rights activist, who accused an immigration officer of sexually abusing the minor. According to Molina’s statement, the incident occurred when immigration officers, who were searching for Haitians, broke into several houses in a neighborhood in Punta Cana in the early hours of April 5.
Molina pointed out that the accused officer attacked the minor, who was alone at home while her mother was at work. Medical reports confirm the sexual assault, although the identity of the officer is yet to be determined since the officers, during the operation, had concealed their faces.
The activist further indicated his concern about the safety of undocumented Haitians, who frequently encounter belligerent interactions with immigration officers. He noted that this was not his first instance filing a rape complaint.
On the other hand, the Dominican government issued a public apology for the incident. They assured full commitment into holding the offenders accountable and meting out appropriate punishment, with no leniency.
Sidebar statement from Venancio Alcántara, Director of Migration, outlined the intolerability of such heinous acts by immigration officers. He added that if found guilty of such disgraceful violation, the officers would face law enforcement action, as they are trained to respect all foreign nationals, regardless of their nationality, under the mandate of Law 285-04.