Semi-truck driver Ignacio Cruz-Mendoza, 47, was arrested on vehicular homicide and vehicular assault charges after a crash Tuesday afternoon, 9 News reported.
The Colorado State Patrol (CSP) said Cruz-Mendoza’s semi-truck veered off the roadside, rolled over and spilled its cargo of pipe and angle iron over five other vehicles, according to the outlet. Scott Miller, 64, one of the drivers, reportedly died on-site. Another driver sustained significant injury, the outlet reported.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reportedly disclosed that Cruz-Mendoza had previous deportation records and that he is currently in the country illegally.
Semi driver arrested in fatal Highway 285 crash had been removed from US multiple times, ICE says https://t.co/TrOgxb0Qv8
— 9NEWS Denver (@9NEWS) June 17, 2024
CSP said they suspected the main cause of the crash was speeding, 9 News reported. Investigators reportedly placed Cruz-Mendoza under arrest on charges of vehicular homicide, vehicular assault, driving recklessly and driving without a commercial driver’s license.
ICE confirmed that the suspect is a Mexican citizen, according to the outlet. Federal court records found by 9 News Investigates show Cruz-Mendoza was arrested on local drug charges in Oregon in April 2002. He was reportedly convicted and sentenced to a 10-day jail term and 18 months probation. (RELATED: One Dead After Semi-Truck Slams Into Texas Department Of Safety Office, Police Say)
This Oregon arrest was when ICE first took note of the suspect, the outlet reported. An immigration judge in the state reportedly ruled that he be deported to his home country on May 29, 2002, according to the agency.
Cruz-Mendoza has been deported or has left of his own free will on 16 occasions, ICE said, according to the outlet. ICE said reportedly they have no other records of local criminal cases against him.
Monique Trucking, the company that employed the suspect, has racked up five violations in a span of two years, a Department of Transportation records review by 9NEWS Investigates found.
ICE reportedly requested that the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office inform them if local authorities release Mendoza. He is expected again in court Tuesday, according to the outlet.
