An undocumented immigrant released by the Obama administration is accused of killing three people in a hit-and-run in North Carolina
The suspect, a Salvadoran citizen identified as Javiel Pena Sola, faces three charges of hit-and-run resulting in death. DHS maintains that he had been detained by ICE in 2016 but was subsequently released, despite having a criminal record.
ICE agents in New Jersey / Charly Triballeau
An undocumented immigrant, who according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was released by the administration of Barack Obama after being held in custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), was charged with causing a fatal accident in North Carolina in which three people died, and of fleeing the scene of the accident.
The defendant, Javiel Pena Sola, a citizen of El Salvador, remains in custody at the Rowan County Jail and faces three felony charges of hit-and-run resulting in serious injury or death, the Salisbury Police Department reported. The investigation remains open, and authorities have not ruled out filing additional charges.
The accident
According to the official report from the Salisbury Police Department, the accident occurred on the night of July 18, around 10:45 p.m., on Mooresville Road (NC-150), near Town Court.
Upon arriving at the scene, officers found a vehicle with three seriously injured occupants. Two of them died at the scene, while the third victim was transported by helicopter to a local hospital, where he later died due to the severity of his injuries.
Authorities located a second vehicle, allegedly driven by Pena Sola, in a nearby creek after it veered off the road. With the assistance of a K-9 unit, officers apprehended the suspect after he attempted to flee. He was first taken to a medical facility for treatment and was subsequently placed in police custody.
The victims' names had not been released as of press time because authorities were still notifying their families.
DHS: He had been detained by ICE in 2016
In a statement released on Wednesday, the Department of Homeland Security reported that ICE filed an immigration detention order requesting that North Carolina authorities not release Pena Sola if he is released during the criminal proceedings.
According to DHS, the Salvadoran citizen entered the country illegally through Arizona in 2002 and has accumulated several criminal convictions in Maryland.
These include convictions for:
- Reckless driving.
- Fleeing the scene of an accident involving damage to an occupied vehicle.
- Driving without a license.
In addition, he was arrested for escaping from police custody. Following that incident, local authorities turned the suspect over to ICE in March 2016, after executing an immigration detention order. However, the federal government released him approximately two months later, according to DHS.
DHS questions the decision to release him
In the official statement, DHS Deputy Secretary for Public Affairs Lauren Bis stated that the defendant's criminal history made the risk he posed foreseeable.
"This criminal and illegal immigrant from El Salvador faces serious criminal charges following a hit-and-run that left three people dead in North Carolina. His criminal history includes prior convictions for hit-and-run, reckless driving, and driving without a license. Although ICE arrested him in 2016, the Obama administration released him into American communities. These deaths were entirely preventable. Open borders and sanctuary policies have deadly consequences," Bis stated.
ICE seeks to keep him in custody
An immigration detention order is a formal request through which ICE asks a jail or law enforcement agency to provide advance notice of the release of a person deemed removable and, where permitted by law, to temporarily detain that person to facilitate their transfer to federal immigration authorities.
The case has reignited the debate over immigration policies and the criteria used for the release of immigrants with criminal records, after DHS stated that Pena Sola had previously been turned over to federal authorities and subsequently released before the accident for which he is now being charged.
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