An illegal immigrant from El Salvador who faced deportation orders and had run-ins with the law has been charged with murdering a 2-year-old Maryland boy caught in a shootout while in a park with his teenage mom.
Nilson Granados-Trejo, 25, was charged Monday with first- and second-degree murder, the fifth suspect busted for the Feb. 8 shooting that killed toddler Jeremy Poou-Caceres and injured his 17-year-old mom, cops said.
The toddler was caught in the crossfire between two groups involved in a territorial dispute over drug dealing in Langley Park, according to charging documents obtained by the Washington Post
Granados-Trejo was previously twice arrested on theft charges and had been ordered removed from the US by an immigration judge in New Jersey — but was repeatedly released from custody despite three immigration detainers, FOX 5 revealed.
Still, his public defender argued that the suspect should be granted pretrial release because he was “at the wrong place, at the wrong time” as a passenger in the shooter’s vehicle, according to the Washington Post.
Assistant State’s Attorney Giovanna Miller, however, noted that Granados-Trejo is “a co-conspirator or an accomplice” in a murder — and has previously failed to appear in court at least three times while also using several aliases.
Judge Donnaka Varner Lewis agreed that he’s a flight risk and ordered him held without bail
Four other suspects have been arrested in the case: Israel Fuentes, 33, Johnny Alejandro Turciosa, 28, and two teenage boys, a 15-year-old and 16-year-old both charged as adults.
Fuentes and Turcios are said to have been in one of the groups in the shootout, while the two teenagers were in another.
Granados-Trejo admitted to police that he was riding in a stolen Ford Explorer with Fuentes and Turcios at the time of the shooting — and that he saw Fuentes “shooting a firearm during the incident,” according to documents cited by the outlet.
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Removal Operations Baltimore rep James Covington told FOX 5 that Granados-Trejo is in the US illegally.
A Justice Department immigration judge in Newark, New Jersey, ordered him removed from the country on Nov. 7, 2022, according to the outlet.
But on March 21, 2023, the Montgomery County Police Department arrested Granados-Trejo and charged him with theft, according to ICE records cited by FOX 5.
The agency lodged an immigration detainer on the suspect with the Montgomery County Detention Center, but it refused to honor it and he was released on March 27, 2023, the outlet reported.
Montgomery County police reportedly arrested Granados-Trejo again on Sept. 26 on charges of theft, as well as attempt to obstruct and hindering.
ICE once again lodged an immigration detainer with the MCDC on Sept. 27, but he was released from custody on Oct. 12, FOX 5 reported.
The day after his most recent arrest was announced, a third immigration detainer was lodged against Granados-Trejo with the Prince George’s County Detention Center in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, the outlet said.
