Immigration and Customs Enforcement has lodged a detainer in North Carolina for a Romanian national with prior convictions for sexual offenses involving a minor, according to federal officials.
The action is intended to ensure the individual remains in custody while immigration proceedings continue and reflects how detainers are used when a noncitizen with a criminal conviction is held by local authorities.
ICE officials said Rebeca Fratila-Ilies was taken into custody by local law enforcement in Guilford County on March 12, 2025, for a probation violation. The sheriff’s office later notified federal authorities that she was in custody.
According to ICE, Fratila-Ilies was previously convicted in Virginia of two counts of carnal knowledge of a child and statutory rape and was sentenced to 10 years in prison. Authorities said she was released from custody before completing that sentence.
ICE lodged a detainer with the Guilford County Sheriff’s Office on April 17, requesting notification prior to any release so federal officers can assume custody if appropriate.
“ICE lodged an immigration detainer requesting that she not be released while removal proceedings are pending,” said ICE Director Todd M. Lyons.
Federal officials said Fratila-Ilies entered the United States as a child and obtained lawful permanent resident status in 2006. Immigration authorities later determined that her status was tied to a fraudulent asylum application filed by a parent.
According to ICE, an immigration judge ordered her removed in 2017 after she failed to appear for proceedings. Officials said she later appealed that decision and was granted relief from removal in 2022, prior to her criminal convictions.
Immigration authorities said her convictions may make her subject to removal under federal law. She is currently in removal proceedings, according to ICE.
Fratila-Ilies remains in local custody while her probation violation case proceeds. Federal officials said they are prepared to take custody if she is released by local authorities.
Immigration detainers are commonly used by federal authorities to request custody transfers in cases where an individual may be subject to removal following criminal proceedings.
