Eleno Cervantes Illegal Immigrant Charged with Attempted Rape

An illegal immigrant has been charged after sexually assaulting a woman in a bathroom in southeast Charlotte, according to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.

Around 3:30 p.m. on Monday, July 29, officers responded to Mr. Tire Auto Service Centers on Monroe Road for reports of a sexual assault.

A 32-year-old woman said she was inside the bathroom when a man sexually assaulted her. Detectives quickly identified the suspect as 31-year-old Eleno Cervantes.

Eleno Cervantes Photo MCSO

He’s currently being held on a $250,000 bond for the charges of:

2nd-degree attempted rape

Sexual battery

1st-degree kidnapping

Assault on a female

He also has an outstanding ICE Detainer which Mecklenburg County Sherriff Garry McFadden refused to enforce.

According to CMPD PIO "great investigative work by CMPD’s Sexual Assault Unit in quickly identifying and arresting a suspect wanted in an attempted sexual assault.  On Tuesday, July 29, 2024, Providence Division officers responded to a sexual assault call for service in the 3300 block of Monroe Road.  Upon arrival, a female victim reported to officers that an unknown male suspect entered the bathroom while she was inside and attempted to sexually assault her.  Sexual Assault detectives were immediately notified and began to investigate this incident.  Detectives quickly developed a lead and identified Mr. Eleno Cervantes, 30, as a suspect in this case.  Officers located and arrested Mr. Cervantes without incident."

Charlotte "Ace" reporter Joe Bruno chased down the facts: "ICE tells me the agency filed a detainer on Eleno Cervantes-Juarez, a 31-year-old citizen and national of Mexico. He is accused of attempting to sexually assault a woman in Mr Tire in southeast Charlotte. Cervantes-Juarez was encountered by U.S. Border Patrol on Aug, 17, 2022, near Nogales Arizona after he unlawfully entered the United States".

Estimates of illegals living in the Carolinas range from 750,000 to more than 1 million. Most are hard working skilled and unskilled laborers. However more than 20,000 have found themselves in trouble with Law Enforcement in the last three years. 

Common arrests include DWI, Stolen Vehicles, Assault Drugs and Weapons charges. More than 1,000 have been arrested on more violent crimes including rape and murder. 

Within the immigrant community many crimes are not reported for fear of deportation or retaliation.