FIRST ON FOX: An illegal immigrants alleged hit-and-run that critically injured an elderly woman outside her Miami-Dade home prompted U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to urge local authorities to “cooperate with us and not release this criminal from jail.”
Seventy-four-year-old Geraldine Byrd, whom neighbors described as “kind” and friendly, is on life support in critical condition after authorities say she was run over by Tomas Raymundo Brito, according to CBS Miami.
The outlet reported that Brito allegedly struck Byrd twice outside her home early Sunday morning. Byrd had stepped out of her car to open her gate when Brito allegedly struck her vehicle, causing it to spin into Byrd before his truck allegedly struck her again, trapping her underneath the vehicle.
Neighbors were reportedly alerted to the crash by the sound of a loud boom. One neighbor, named Kristina Diaz, told NBC 6 South Florida that “we could hear screaming, we could hear everybody yelling, Where is she? Oh, shes underneath the car. Call 911.”
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The same neighbor told the outlet that Byrd “would always send my daughter gifts for her birthday. So, she was a very kind woman.” Speaking in Spanish, another neighbor, Flor Ortiz, told CBS Miami that although she and Byrd “do not speak the same language, but we always greet each other. She is a good person.”
After the incident, Brito allegedly got out of the truck and fled the scene. A family member of Byrds reportedly chased him down and found him hiding in a shed. After his arrest, Brito reportedly admitted he was the driver and said he drank five beers before the incident.
Byrd was airlifted to a nearby hospital and remains on life support in critical condition, according to the .
Brito was charged with leaving the scene of a crash causing serious bodily injury and driving without a license.
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Fox News Digital learned that ICE with the Miami-Dade Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center the same day Brito was arrested.
Brito entered the U.S. illegally at an unknown date and location, according to DHS. He is a Guatemalan national.
“This criminal illegal alien from Guatemala is charged with hit-and-run after a drunk-driving accident that sent a 74-year-old woman to the hospital in critical condition in Miami-Dade County,” Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
“He should have never been allowed in our communities or on our streets,” Mullin continued, adding, “ICE is asking officials in Miami-Dade County to cooperate with us and not release this criminal from jail, and to turn him over to ICE custody so we can remove him from our country.”
Mullin added that “thanks to the strong leadership of President Donald Trump, ICE is unleashed to go after criminal illegal aliens like this one so that we can make America safe again.”
A spokesperson for the Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation Department confirmed with Fox News Digital that the department had received ICE’s request and that Brito is currently in custody
