An illegal immigrant who was released into the US by the Biden administration allegedly killed an innocent driver during a police chase in California last month, officials said.
Darwin Felipe Bahamon Martinez, a 21-year-old Colombian national, was nabbed by authorities after illegally crossing the California-Mexico border in August 2023, but was allowed back on the streets, according to the ICE.
On Jan. 21, he led police in Anaheim on a three-minute chase after officers attempted to pull him over for driving recklessly, NBC Los Angeles reported.
Bahamon Martinez then crashed into two vehicles in nearby Placentia, killing father Jose Antonio Ramos Hernandez, 59, and injuring an 83-year-old woman.
“He was released into the U.S. under the Biden administration’s so-called ‘catch-and-release’ policies, but if that hadn’t happened, the innocent 59-year-old driver he allegedly killed may still be alive today,” ICE said in a statement.
Bahamon Martinez was charged with vehicular manslaughter, evading a police officer causing death and reckless driving. He’s being held in the Orange County Jail on a $2 million bail.
ICE lodged an immigration detainer against him on Jan. 22, though California’s sanctuary state laws do not compel local authorities to transfer illegal migrants charged with crimes into federal custody.
“If local officials in Gavin Newsom’s sanctuary California choose to release Bahamon Martinez into the community, they will put ALL Californians at risk,” ICE said.
“California must honor our immigration detainer. Otherwise, ICE will be forced to re-arrest this criminal illegal alien at-large.”