Jose Montano & Henry Sanchez Milian: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

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A student who has an ICE detainer against him was accused along with his friend of raping a 14-year-old girl during school hours in a Rockville High School bathroom stall. However, the charges have now been dropped in a surprise twist after the case became a flashpoint in the national immigration debate.

Henry E. Sanchez Milian, 18, and Jose O. Montano, 17, both 9th graders at the Maryland school despite their ages, were ordered held without bond, The Washington Post reported. (The photo above is of Sanchez Milian.)

On May 5, prosecutors dropped the sexual assault charges against the two men. “Prosecutors said evidence does not support sexual assault charges. Montano faces pornography and distribution of pornography charges. Sanchez also faces distribution of pornography charges,” reported NBC Washington.

The men had each been in the U.S. for less than a year, and ICE has a detain hold on Sanchez for, according to the Washington Post, a “pending alien removal case.”

The case has been thrust into the national immigration debate when Donald Trump’s Press Secretary Sean Spicer mentioned it during a press briefing as an example of why the president wants to tighten immigration policies.

The details of the offense are contained in disturbing court documents. Beware that the details are graphic.

Here’s what you need to know:


1. The Court Documents Described a Graphic Rape by Both Male Teenagers in the Bathroom

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Although prosecutors now say there is not evidence to support the accusations, the claims inflamed the community because of their graphic nature. According to Fox 5, “Attorneys for Jose Montano asked a judge at a Friday morning hearing that the first-degree rape and first-degree sexual offenses charges against their client be dropped, and the judge granted that request. Montano is being released immediately. Maryland state prosecutors say after reviewing video and speaking to witnesses, the facts do not support the rape charge.”

Court documents said that, on March 16, an officer began an investigation into an allegation of rape of a minor. The victim is called Victim A in the disturbing report.

The report says Victim A is a 14-year-old female who attends Rockville High school in Rockville, Maryland.

“Victim A told school staff that she was sexually assaulted by two boys in the school bathroom,” the report says.

“She was in the school hallway when she met with the two other students later identified as Jose Montano and Henry Sanchez Milian. She knew Montano as a friend and did not know Sanchez,” the court documents say.

They say Montano and the victim engaged in conversation and then he allegedly asked the victim for a hug. They passed the bathroom, and Montano is accused of asking her for sex, but she refused. He asked again “more persistently and pushed victim A into the boys’ bathroom,” the court documents allege.

In the bathroom, the two suspects are accused of pushing the girl into a bathroom stall and raping her multiple times and ways, including sodomizing her, while speaking to each other in Spanish. At one point she “cried out in pain” and was told to calm down, the records allege.

Blood was recovered from the bathroom, the report says.


2. Sanchez Has a Pending ‘Alien Removal’ Case Against Him & Was Stopped by Border Patrol Seven Months Ago

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According to The Washington Post, Sanchez is “a native of Guatemala who arrived in the United States about seven months ago” and has a “pending ‘alien removal’ case against him.”

According to Fox News, “a Border Patrol agent stopped Sanchez-Milian in August 2016 in Rio Valley Grande, Texas, and determined he’d entered the country illegally from Mexico. Sanchez-Milian was ordered to appear before an immigration judge, but the hearing had not yet been scheduled.”

Fox 5 DC reported, “U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has now lodged an immigration detainer on Sanchez.”

Montano came to the United States eight months ago, the Post reported. Because he’s a minor, ICE won’t reveal details of his immigration status, but Sanchez is a citizen of Guatemala, according to WTOP.

The suspects were charged with “first-degree rape and two counts of first-degree sexual offense in the violent assault of the female student,” reported WTOP, which said the older suspect is charged as an adult.


3. The Teenagers Were Arrested at the School, Which Sent a Letter Home to Parents & the Superintendent Wants to ‘Change the Conversation’ From Immigration

According to WTOP, Sanchez and Montano were arrested at the school. Fox 5 DC said the sexual assault was announced on a school loudspeaker and surveillance video in the hall captured the men.

The television station reported that the school sent a letter home to parents.

“Ensuring a safe, secure and welcoming learning environment for all of our students is our top priority,” the letter said, according to WTOP. “Our staff remains vigilant in the monitoring of our school each and every day. Please remind your child that if they believe they are a victim of an assault or see something inappropriate, they should immediately tell a staff member.”

According to the Baltimore Sun, Jack Smith, superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools, said, “Some try to make this into an issue of immigration. We would like to change the conversation.” Smith said, “We serve every student who walks in the door. It is not only the right thing to do, it is the law,” according to the newspaper.


4. The Charges Carry the Possibility of Life in Prison & Both Spicer & the Governor Expressed Outrage

The President’s press secretary, Spicer, brought the case up in a press briefing on March 20, saying, “I think part of the reason that the president has made illegal immigration and crackdown such a big deal is because of tragedies like this.”

The state’s governor expressed outrage on Facebook, writing, “The State of Maryland is calling on Montgomery County to immediately and fully cooperate with all federal authorities during the investigation of this heinous crime. The public has a right to know how something this tragic and unacceptable was allowed to transpire in a public school.”

NBC News quoted Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office spokesman Ramon Korionoff as saying, “These are very serious allegations carrying a life sentence. The potential of life in prison would be available as we prosecute these individuals.”

The attorney representing Montano wants the younger suspect moved to a juvenile facility, according to NBC. Police have not released a mugshot for Montano because he’s underage.


5. The Judge Deemed Both Suspects Flight Risks

In denying the suspects bond, a judge “said they were dangerous and flight risks due to the fact they have only been in this country for a couple of months. Montano came to the U.S. from El Salvador,” reported WUSA9.

According to Fox 5 DC, “Although the two suspects are 17 and 18 years old, they were enrolled as freshmen because they both arrived in the United States only a few months ago and were taking English as a Second Language (ESL) classes.”