A California mother grieving the loss of her 8-year-old daughter in a Thanksgiving weekend accident for which an illegal immigrant has been arrested says the tragedy did not need to happen.
Bryan Josue Alva-Rodriguez, 25, a Guatemalan citizen, has been charged with murder, vehicular manslaughter, and driving under the influence in the accident in which Arya Cruz Acencio was killed and her father, Oscar, a U.S. Marine, was critically injured.
“I care very deeply for these people that want to have a better life. I really do, but I have no sympathy for the driver that hit me and my family. I don’t. I’m angry, and he shouldn’t have been here in the first place,” Jackie Cruz Acencio said, according to Fox News.
“We didn’t deserve it, and nobody does,” she said.
“I’m said and I’m angry,” she said in a video posted to X.
EXCLUSIVE: A U.S. Marine’s 8-year-old daughter was killed by an intoxicated illegal alien with two prior DUIs in a fiery crash, per prosecutors. Marine’s leg was amputated and he’s slowly gaining consciousness from a traumatic brain injury. Now his wife, who survived and is in… pic.twitter.com/YXuIWHGoVr
— Matt Finn (@MattFinnFNC) January 2, 2026
Alva-Rodriguez entered the United States illegally on Feb. 8, 2018. He was detained by Border Patrol agents in Calexico, California, and released after being given a notice to appear in front of an immigration judge.
On Sept. 6, 2020, Alva-Rodriguez was charged with DUI. He was charged with another DUI on April 7, 2021.
On March 16, 2023, an immigration judge ordered Alva-Rodriguez deported, but he remained in the United States.
Alcohol was suspected as a factor in the November crash, the California Highway Patrol has said, according to KSWB-TV.
“Impaired driving continues to take lives in our communities, and every one of those losses is preventable,” CHP Capt. Michael Monteagudo has said.
The Department of Homeland Security announced U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement lodged an arrest detainer for Alva-Rodriguez, according to a DHS news release.
🚨Suspect ordered removed in 2023- now connected to child’s death. pic.twitter.com/h4EKPGeZBl
— ICE San Diego (@EROSanDiego) December 3, 2025
“How many deaths of children at the hands of criminal illegal aliens need to happen before Governor Newsom and sanctuary politicians will prioritize the safety and security of American families? This serial drunk driver should have never been allowed back onto California roads,” Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said.
“We are praying for the family of this child who will be grieving this holiday season. Secretary Noem is calling on Governor Newsom to honor this ICE arrest detainer for this illegal alien,” she said.
Illegal immigrant with history of drunk driving charged with killing girl 8, in booze-fueled crash in San Diego https://t.co/SzdpczVhoY pic.twitter.com/ByTLQ24X88
— New York Post (@nypost) December 5, 2025
The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that seven people were injured in the crash.
The California Highway Patrol said a 2005 Toyota Tacoma was northbound on San Felipe Road when it crossed over a solid double-yellow line and smashed head-on into a Toyota Camry.
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