TW: This story contains disturbing anecdotes of sexual violence.

Arizona’s Customs and Border Patrol Agency (CBP) announced the arrest of an Iowa couple for human smuggling and sexual assault after a Guatemalan girl was found in the streets of Sioux City and told her story to authorities. The girl, whose name will not be released for her own safety, is being referred as  “ABF” on the federal affidavit detailing the perpetrator’s charges. Amy Francisco and her husband, Cristobal Francisco-Nicolas have been arrested and charged.

The couple was arrested in San Diego, but will likely face a federal court in Iowa.

ABF was found wandering Sioux City, urgently telling pedestrians she’d been sexually assaulted.

From there, Sioux City police interviewed ABF to learn that she and her father, Fernando Bartolo-Francisco were smuggled into the U.S. by relatives, Cristobal Francisco-Nicolas and his wife Amy Francisco. She said they were released from El Paso Detention Center because of overcrowding and were flown to Omaha by their relatives.

The couple then locked ABF in a room with a metal bed and a bucket for a bathroom.

Above is a Google image of the couple’s home where she was allegedly locked in. The affidavit said that, “ABF then stated Cristobal raped her and that Amy watched it happen from the door to the locked room. After being raped five times, ABF stated that one morning Cristobal left for work and did not lock the door.”

She then snuck out of the house while Amy Francisco was sleeping. She roamed the streets looking for someone who spoke Spanish to help her. 

The Iowa couple admitted to smuggling ABF in but requested an attorney when law enforcement began questioning them for the alleged rape of ABF.

Francisco-Nicolas told police that he made arrangements for a coyote to transfer the father and daughter to the U.S. after learning through his sister that they were desperate to leave Guatemala. 

“Cristobal stated he knows he messed up and the mistake he made was receiving these people,” the affidavit said. “Cristobal requested an attorney when law enforcement began to question him about the alleged rape of ABF.”

In response, some folks are taking the opportunity to demand CBP shut down the concentration camps and seek justice for victims within the system.

In February 2019, a report was released that detailed thousands of immigrant children saying they were sexually abused in U.S. detention centers. Between 2012 and March 2018 alone, there were 1,448 allegations of sexual abuse filed with ICE. Certainly, not every victim files a complaint. 

Last year, the ACLU helped an asylum-seeker from Honduras file suit against an employee at a detention center for failure to protect her from sexual violence.

 Court documents detail how her abuser threatened her with possible deportation while their coworkers stood by and continued the jokes. There are laws in place that criminalize any kind of sexual behavior between a correctional facility staff member and the people in their custody. That’s because consent cannot happen when powers are imbalanced. This facility is still trying to deflect responsibility by saying the detainee “consented.”

Some people are taking the opportunity to blame Democrats for ABF’s assault.

Given that ICE and CBP are not being held accountable by anyone. That fact, among many others including the conditions of the camps themselves, has incited public outrage, nationwide protests, and finger-pointing on both sides of the aisle. 

Everyone seems to agree on one thing: prosecute.

Folks who don’t want to see immigrants in this country are weaponizing the tragedy by alleging it as cause to close the border. Folks who care about immigrants see the instance as a clear example of why undocumented immigrants should be granted basic rights that would allow ABF’s father to be lawfully employed and to live openly.

The culture of fear for undocumented immigrants makes them among the most vulnerable members of our society. ABF was not registered with a school. Her father couldn’t go to authorities without risking deportation. It’s clear that an undocumented child wouldn’t go looking for the police unless her claims were valid. 

Yes, prosecute these individuals, and also make it safer for every family to exist without harm.

READ: Major Hotel Chains Are Rolling Out Panic Buttons To Protect Their Employees From Sexual Assault

An undocumented mother posted a video on Twitter of an argument she was in with her ex’s new girlfriend. The video starts with a woman yelling at the camera saying, “If anything, you should be afraid to call the cops because I’m not the immigrant here.” With that, the argument just kind of took off and Twitter is split in their opinions.

Dania Jaramillo posted a 46-second long video of an argument with her ex’s new girlfriend and it starts on a very uncomfortable note.

The woman is heard implying to Jaramillo that she shouldn’t call the cops because of her immigration status. This threat is one often used by people to keep undocumented people afraid of reporting crimes and harassment. In fact, there are studies that show undocumented communities not reporting crimes for fear of being arrested and harassed by police.

The woman then continues to argue with Jaramillo, who says she shouldn’t be surprised that people know of her since she is coming into their community.

“Umm, b*tch, I’ve been in your community,” she tells Jaramillo. “This ain’t yours. Is this yours? No. This is free land, isn’t it? Because, I was born here so I know that all this land is mine.”

Jaramillo gave all of the people on Twitter the background info on the dispute.

The man in the glasses is her ex. According to several tweets, he has had violence issues in the past so Jaramillo’s husband, the man without glasses was outside in case he needed to step in.

Some people went straight for the woman in the video.

Honestly, we all know someone with an accent. Her’s is one that we all remember from our lives. Whether it is a family member or friend, we all know someone who speaks like she does.

People also had an issue with her claiming that all of the land was hers because she was born here.

Like, private property laws are a thing. That being said, the land isn’t inherently yours just because you were “born here.” You might be able to own some land but you don’t just get to say that all the land is your land because you are born in the U.S.

The ex is heard telling Jaramillo that they would be seeing each other in court so some offered her legal advice.

According to tweets by Jaramillo, they are still battling out custody. It is always best to make sure your legal advice is coming from someone in the legal field. However, videos make good evidence if you find yourself trying to make a case of harassment.

The woman in the video did make her Instagram private but that hasn’t stopped people from sharing what she is posting.

While her Instagram is private, the woman wants to get the last word. According to the post, Jaramillo was gossiping about the woman and that is what incited the argument.

The woman did have some defenders.

They are arguing that she wasn’t being xenophobic. Xenophobia is defined as “dislike of or prejudice against people from other countries,” according to Merriam-Webster.

For her defenders, she is just hitting below the belt.

What do you think about the argument between the two women? Do you think this was xenophobic?

Watch the full video below!

READ: Two Racist Florida Women Are Caught On Video Telling A Puerto Rican Man To ‘Go Back To Mexico’ If He Wants To Speak Spanish