Chinese Woman Forced Back into Captivity by Honduran Illegal Immigrant, Police Report

HOUSTON, Texas

Recently, unsettling footage surfaced showing a woman being forcibly taken into a home in East Harris County, Texas. Authorities report that the woman, a Chinese national, was lured by an illegal immigrant from Honduras and held against her will.

On July 14, deputies from the Harris County Sheriff’s Office apprehended Jose Carcamo, who is living in the U.S. illegally. They obtained video evidence from a neighbor’s security cameras that captured Carcamo’s movements returning to his trailer. Investigators believe the woman might be a victim of a significant human trafficking operation, as reported by Khou CBS11 in Houston.

Cancin Carcamo faces charges of sexual assault and kidnapping. Investigations revealed he kept the woman confined without food or water for over five days. The woman alleged, according to Khou, that another illegal immigrant sexually assaulted her multiple times while she was locked in a closet. She managed to escape when the large sliding gate was inadvertently left ajar.

Officials from Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) informed KPRC NBC2 Houston that Carcamo entered the U.S. unlawfully back in 2020. In 2023, under the Biden administration, his case was dismissed, with a note on social media stating that the government exercised prosecutorial discretion at that time.

Lieutenant John Krafka of the Harris County Sheriff’s Office shared that they received a 911 call from a man reporting a woman crying for help. Witnesses described seeing her flee down the street until Carcamo caught up and dragged her back to his trailer. When deputies arrived, they interviewed Carcamo, who denied any involvement.

According to Krafka, Carcamo admitted knowing there was someone in the house but insisted he had never seen her. He claimed she was a woman living there that he did not recognize. Deputies conducted a search and found a closet with the doors secured shut by screws. Upon opening it, they discovered the woman inside.

She told investigators she had been working as a masseuse in New York and was promised a better-paying job in Houston. Someone had driven her to the city. When she arrived, she reported that someone had taken her passport and brought her to the trailer.

The woman suggested that others might be involved and hinted at the possibility of a broader human trafficking network targeting women.

Carcamo faces severe charges, including first-degree felony assault and Class A misdemeanor for bodily injury, and is held on a $150,000 bond. Despite video evidence, Carcamo’s attorney asserts his client’s innocence, stating they expect eventually to clear his name.

An ICE enforcement official provided insight, stating that Carcamo was a 22-year-old illegal immigrant from Honduras who entered the U.S. on May 24, 2020. He had been apprehended previously and his immigration case was dismissed by a judge in September 2023.

The statement emphasized the Harris County Sheriff’s Office’s history of cooperating with ICE officials. However, ICE did not disclose information regarding the victims’ immigration status in this human trafficking case.