An illegal immigrant is accused of killing two boys in South Carolina while driving drunk, as federal authorities move to take custody of him for possible deportation, The Daily Wire has learned.
Eri Perez allegedly veered off the road and onto a sidewalk in Spartanburg County on Sunday, striking 12-year-old Dereon James Robinson and 9-year-old Mikhail-Lee Smith as they rode their bikes, according to FOX Carolina.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has since lodged a detainer asking local authorities to hand over Perez, who they said snuck into the country as a “gotaway” at an unknown time, the Department of Homeland Security told The Daily Wire.
Sophia Pagliuca, a family friend who lived with Dereon for years, called his death “preventable,” expressing outrage over his alleged killer’s illegal immigration status.
“He should be alive right now. And it was a preventable death, and that is what adds a whole other layer to this,” Pagliuca told The Daily Wire.
“Something has to change. There has to be a solution here that serves justice while preventing any other children or any person from dying in this way,” she added.
Dereon’s mother witnessed the crash while accompaning the two boys on their bike ride, WHNS reported. She said she was almost hit before she ran to their aid and performed CPR.
Her son was just three days away from his 13th birthday.
Courtesy of DHS
Pagliuca described Dereon as a “joyful” child.
“And in the way that many boys are so rambunctious and all boy and want to fight and want to get dirty, he just wanted to sit with you, and even as a little child, he didn’t speak for a long time. He was older when he started speaking, probably, like, three years old. And he didn’t even have to say anything to you, for you to feel so joyful,” Pagliuca said.
“I work in the childcare industry now, and no other child I’ve met has had the same sense of joy and the same ability to lift spirits that Dereon had. He was so special,” she added.
Perez was allegedly so drunk at the time of the crash that police had to hold him up, according to WHNS. He also admitted that he had been drinking all day Saturday and Sunday, authorities said.
Another passenger was also in Perez’s vehicle but fled the scene and was never caught.
Perez was denied bond on Monday after being deemed a “flight risk” for his illegal immigration status, WHNS reported.
He was charged with two counts of felony DUI resulting in death, driving without a license and open container, according to FOX Carolina.
