The Massachusetts Trial Court says a rape suspect never should have been allowed to leave the country after making bail.
Thirty-year-old Frederick Amfo was arraigned last Friday in Quincy District court, accused of sexually assaulting a woman during an Uber ride earlier this month.
The judge ordered him held on $10,000 cash bail with conditions, and required Amfo to turn in his passport to the court within 24 hours.
After making bail, Amfo was given 24 hours to surrender his passport, but he never did, and he never checked in with his probation officer either.
An arrest warrant was issued for Amfo on Tuesday after the prosecution learned he left the country.
The Trial Court says there was a major breakdown in the process by Quincy District Court.
Moving forward, the court has implemented new procedures to ensure that defendants who are ordered to surrender their passports surrender them when they post bail and prior to their release.
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No one from Trial Court or Quincy District court would answer NBC10 Boston's questions about where the breakdown occurred.
Along with being an Uber driver, court documents show Amfo worked in security and is a native of Ghana.
NBC10 Boston is not releasing the woman’s name because she is a sexual assault victim.
ICE also sent NBC10 Boston a statement saying Amfo was undocumented, and immigration agents were looking to bring him in. But this information was never sent out by Quincy District Court to Norfolk County jail where Amfo was being held, which allowed for him to be released from custody on bail.
The statement from ICE said in part, "This case highlights the potential dangers of policies that prohibit cooperation with ICE."
