A 56-year-old Albanian man, Hasan Billa, has been arrested by the Boston Office of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in connection with an undercover investigation conducted on May 28 in Hartford, for alleged sexual exploitation of minors.
According to US media, he has been charged with attempted second-degree sexual assault, attempted sexual abuse of a minor and attempted sexual contact with a person under the age of 16.
The investigation was conducted by Hartford police, in cooperation with the FBI's Crimes Against Children and Human Trafficking Task Force.
According to authorities, an undercover detective had posed online as a 15-year-old girl. Billa and two other people are suspected of traveling to an address in Hartford to meet her.
All three were arrested without incident, while a bail of $500,000 was initially set for each.
ICE announced Billa's arrest on Sept. 25, saying he was detained during targeted operations in Wolcott.
His case remains pending and there is no final court decision yet. ICE has not released any further details about his immigration status or whether the 56-year-old is currently in the agency's custody.
