An 18-year-old illegal immigrant from El Salvador allegedly groped 12 female classmates at a Virginia high school — and was allowed into the US under the Biden administration.
Israel Flores Ortiz, who is almost 19 but a junior at Fairfax High School, has been charged with nine counts of assault and battery after he was accused of repeatedly creeping up behind the students in crowded hallways and grabbing them between the legs.
Ortiz, who entered the country illegally in 2024, was released under a federal government policy during the Biden administration, according to local outlet 7News.
The teen appeared in court on Friday after his arrest on March 7, where prosecutors alleged that the incidents took place inside the school — located 20 miles outside of Washington, DC — as students were changing classes.
Parents claim that Ortiz’s disturbing behavior had been going on for months.
“There’s a group of about 12 individuals that have reported this assault,” the mother of one alleged victim said. “He just sneakily walked up behind them and put his hand in between their legs.”
The parent stressed the encounters went far beyond horseplay.
“It was not just a butt smack or a butt grab,” she said. “It was a groping of a private area. It had been occurring for several months.”
Police listed Feb. 25 as the official offense date, but parents say students had complained about similar incidents long before that.
Families also blasted school officials, accusing Fairfax County Public Schools of downplaying the situation.
Principal Georgina Aye sent a letter to parents on March 12 informing them of a student’s arrest for “inappropriately touching other students” and described the incidents as the suspect “touching students’ buttocks while they were transitioning in the hallways.”
Parents said the wording minimized the allegations and only came after families demanded an explanation.
“[The county] attempted to diminish what happened to these girls,” one parent said, calling the district’s response “abysmal.”
In a statement to 7News, Fairfax County Public Schools said: “While Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) is unable to comment on specifics due to federal and state privacy laws, we prioritize student and staff safety and we fully investigate any time someone shares that an incident has occurred at school, or that they do not feel safe at school.
“We are grateful to our law enforcement partners who continue to work swiftly and thoroughly when there are safety concerns in our schools. The safety of all FCPS students and staff remains a top priority.”
Meanwhile, a Fairfax County judge denied Ortiz bail this week — even though prosecutors did not oppose his release — after reviewing surveillance video and determining the proposed conditions did not adequately protect the public.
ICE lodged a detainer seeking custody of Ortiz for deportation, but the agency said the Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office failed to honor it.
“Unfortunately, sanctuary politicians like Gov. (Abigail) Spanberger are outlawing cooperation with ICE and choosing to RELEASE criminal illegal aliens from their jails back onto their communities to create more American victims,” an ICE spokesperson said.
“We are calling on Fairfax County to honor our detainer to ensure this violent criminal is removed from our country so he can never claim another victim again.”
Ortiz’s charges — misdemeanor assault and battery, not sexual assault — carry a maximum penalty of one year in jail.
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