An illegal immigrant with a criminal record living in Lowell is in jail on $1 million bail after being charged with raping a girl in Massachusetts beginning when she was 5 years old.

Maynor Francisco Hernandez-Rodas, 38, a citizen of Guatemala, according to the Suffolk District Attorney’s office, faces four counts of aggravated rape of a child, three counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14 and a count of enticing a child under 16.

Hernandez-Rodas’ alleged victim came forward at 10 years old in May of last year to say that he had raped her repeatedly beginning five years before first in Chelsea and then continuing in Lowell and Lynn.

The Suffolk DA’s office is prosecuting the case because Chelsea is a part of Suffolk County. A Suffolk grand jury indicted Hernandez-Rodas on Dec. 11.

At Hernandez-Rodas’ arraignment on Wednesday, Suffolk Superior Court Clerk Magistrate Edward Curley set bail at $1 million and scheduled a next date of March 5 for a pretrial hearing.

Agents of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Administration’s Enforcement and Removal Operations field office in Boston arrested Hernandez-Rodas on Sept. 20 in Lowell, according to the office.

“Maynor Francisco Hernandez-Rodas stands accused of horrific crimes against a Massachusetts child,” said acting field office director Patricia Hyde. “He represents a significant danger to the children of our community that we will not tolerate. ERO Boston will continue to prioritize public safety by arresting and removing egregious noncitizen threats from our New England neighborhoods.”

Since illegally entering the country at an unknown date in an unknown location, according to ICE, Hernandez-Rodas has been arrested several times in New England.

The field office says that he was convicted in Bridgeport, Connecticut, on Sept. 16, 2011, for “breach of the peace,” for which he got six months in prison. He was convicted again in Connecticut, this time in Norwalk, for the same offense in May 15, 2016, this time receiving a fine of $100.

Finally, Lowell Police arrested him on June 14, 2024, for aggravated rape of a child and rape of a child with force.

The Suffolk DA’s office recommends that survivors of child abuse and exploitation “and their non-offending caretakers” access services provided by the Children’s Advocacy Center of Suffolk County. The Center can be reached by calling 617-779-2146.

Survivors may also contact the Child Protection Unit at the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office at 617-619-4300. Anyone who believes that a child in Massachusetts may be the victim of abuse should call the DCF Child at Risk Hotline at 1-800-792-5200.