Massachusetts

Ex-Youth Baseball Coach Accused of Child Rape Returned to Boston Years After Deportation

Immigration officials had deported Jose Ortega after he was indicted for allegedly grooming a child as young as 12 and abusing them for years

A former Boston youth baseball couch who was accused of raping a child but deported in 2014 has been brought back to Massachusetts to stand trial, the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office said Monday.

Jose Ortega, 48, is charged with rape of a child under 16 and battery of a child under 14. He was originally indicted in 2014 and released on bail. But immigration officials took him into custody and deported him, according to the district attorney's office.

In the time since Ortega's deportation, Suffolk County prosecutors have worked with federal authorities to bring him back to the U.S. He had been in the Dominican Republic. On Friday, FBI agents handed him over to the Boston Police Department at Logan Airport, the district attorney's office said.

"This lengthy process comes to fruition today, as the defendant returns to Suffolk Superior Court five years after he was removed from the reach of our criminal justice system," District Attorney Rachael Rollins said.

Jose Ortega allegedly abused and assaulted a boy while he was managing the Boston Broncos youth baseball league and lived in Roslindale. Ortega allegedly began grooming the boy in 2003 when he was as young as 12 or 13, according to the district attorney's office.

Ortega threatened to give the victim less playing time during baseball games if he didn't comply with his sexual advances. The abuse continued until 2010, the district attorney's office said.

He was convicted of child enticement in 2012, according to the district attorney's office.

Ortega was arrested and convicted of dealing cocaine in 1998. His legal status was stripped after this conviction, according to The Boston Globe.

He made a brief appearance in court on Monday. His next court appearance will take place at the end of September, according to the district attorney's office.

"We want to hold serious offenders accountable regardless of their immigration status," Rollins said.

It wasn't immediately clear if Ortega had an attorney who could speak to the charges.

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