Court records indicate federal authorities deported a man accused of forcing two unwilling teens to have sex with each other nearly two weeks after police identified him as a suspect, although Houston police now say they did not know the suspect's identity until after he was deported.

In two sworn charging documents, a Houston Police Department investigator said police received a report last Aug. 13 contending that DNA evidence from the victim's body was linked to Evelio Espinoza-Erazo, 32, in a nationwide database. The detective later stated that Espinoza-Erazo was deported to Honduras on Aug. 30, more than two weeks after the initial report.

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Charges against Espinoza-Erazo were not filed until mid-December, raising questions about whether officials tasked with deporting him knew he was suspected in the case.

A spokesperson for U.S. immigration sand Customs Enforcement in Houston on Monday stated Espinoza-Erazo was in custody in Wichita, Kansas, and then deported from Louisiana. The spokesperson referred further comment to another official, who did not immediately respond.

Kese Smith, spokesperson for HPD, said Monday that police did not know Espinoza-Erazo's DNA was reportedly linked until after he was deported. Smith did not know why there was a discrepancy between what detectives told him and the court.

He said the detective on the case, who Smith said was able to independently corroborate the DNA hit "through other investigative means," worked dilligently until charges were filed Dec. 13.

"As a department, we want to see suspects brought to justice," Smith said. "The first step is getting charges accepted following a thorough investigation. The person I feel the most for is the victim, first and foremost in our minds."

In the charging document, the detective stated the victim idenfitied Espinoza-Erazo as her attacker during a photo lineup in November.

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Prior to his deportation, however, Espinoza-Erazo had an unrelated felony warrant out for his arrest stemming from a December 2018 police chase, records show.

Espinoza-Erazo is accused of kidnapping the teens in June 2018 while they were eating in a pickup outside a north Houston fast-food restaurant. He allegedly forced the two to sit in the backseat of the truck while he drove them to a wooded area along the White Oak Bayou trail near White Oak Drive and Taylor Street, police allege in court records.

There, he held a gun to the teens and forced them to have sex with each other before he sexually assaulted one of them, one of the victims told police. During the assault, Espinoza-Erazo put the gun on the ground, allowing the victim to grab it herself and point it at her attacker, police said.

He fled the woods, police said. He was not immediately found.

Charges of aggravated sexual assault of a child, aggravated kidnapping and aggravated robbery were filed Dec. 13.

It is unclear if Espinoza-Erazo will be extradited to face the charges.

Jay R. Jordan covers breaking news in the Houston area. Read him on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and our subscriber site, HoustonChronicle.com | Follow him on Twitter at @JayRJordan | Email him at jay.jordan@chron.com