Severe crimes by unauthorized immigrants
This archive collects the most serious documented violent offenses— especially murder and sexual violence—so individual victims are not reduced to a rate. It is not a representative sample of unauthorized immigrants.
For rates, absolute counts, and trends, return to thecrime & public safetysection. For people killed or injured by immigration officers, see theenforcement-force archive. On each record, sources are split into court/official documents and news coverage, with a perceived lean tag on news outlets.
All cases
Laken Riley
Murder / kidnapping / aggravated assault
Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student, was killed while jogging on a university trail in February 2024. Prosecutors said Ibarra attacked her after she resisted an attempted rape. The case became a national flashpoint in the immigration debate and led Congress to pass the Laken Riley Act.
Open case study →Jocelyn Nungaray
Capital murder (alleged) / sexual assault / kidnapping
Jocelyn Nungaray, 12, was found dead under a north Houston bridge in June 2024. Prosecutors allege the two men kidnapped, sexually assaulted, and strangled her. Her mother became a visible advocate for stricter border enforcement. This case is included because of its severity and national prominence—not because guilt has been adjudicated.
Open case study →Debrina Kawam
Murder / arson (alleged)
On December 22, 2024, Debrina Kawam, 57, was set on fire while sleeping on an F train at Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue. Prosecutors say Zapeta-Calil used a lighter, then fanned the flames with clothing while she burned. The attack was captured on surveillance video and shocked the city; Kawam was identified only after days of forensic work.
Open case study →Lizbeth Medina
Murder / aggravated robbery / burglary
Lizbeth Medina, a 16-year-old high-school cheerleader, was stabbed to death in December 2023. Her mother found her body in a bathtub after Lizbeth failed to appear at a Christmas parade. Prosecutors pursued capital-murder theories tied to burglary/robbery; the case drew national attention from immigration hardliners.
Open case study →Rachel Morin
Murder / rape / kidnapping
Rachel Morin, a 37-year-old mother of five, was attacked while jogging on the Ma & Pa Trail in August 2023. Prosecutors said Martinez-Hernandez raped her, beat her with a rock, and hid her body in a drainage culvert. A nationwide manhunt ended with his arrest in Oklahoma in 2024.
Open case study →Kayla Hamilton
Murder / sexual assault
Kayla Hamilton, a 20-year-old with high-functioning autism, was found bound and strangled in her bedroom in July 2022. Prosecutors said Martinez, then a teenager living in the same mobile home, sexually assaulted and murdered her four months after entering the United States. Congress later advanced the Kayla Hamilton Act on unaccompanied-minor vetting.
Open case study →Trooper Michael E. Pahira Jr.
Homicide by vehicle (alleged)
On July 1, 2026, Trooper Michael Pahira Jr., a nearly 20-year veteran, was conducting a commercial-vehicle inspection on I-81 when a tractor-trailer driven by Bon veered onto the shoulder, struck Pahira’s patrol vehicle and the truck under inspection, and pinned the trooper. Both trucks caught fire; Pahira died at a hospital.
Open case study →Katie Abraham & Chloe Polzin
Aggravated DUI resulting in death / leaving the scene
College students Katie Abraham, 20, and Chloe Polzin, 21, were killed early on January 19, 2025, when Cucul Bol—allegedly drunk—rear-ended their car at a red light in Urbana and fled. Three other passengers were injured. U.S. Marshals later arrested him in Texas.
Open case study →Ilias Mavros
Murder (alleged) — home invasion
Ilias “Louie” Mavros, 48, owner of a popular Lynn sandwich shop, was found dead at a Stanwood Street home after a well-being check. Prosecutors and ICE described an apparent home-invasion robbery; reporting said he showed signs of severe trauma.
Open case study →Ruby Garcia
Murder / carjacking
Ruby Garcia, 25, was shot during an argument with Ortiz-Vite in a car on U.S. 131 in March 2024; he dumped her body along the highway. He later turned himself in. The case was cited nationally in the 2024 immigration debate.
Open case study →Joselyn Jhoana Toaquiza
Murder (alleged) / concealment of a corpse
On June 18, 2024—Toaquiza’s 21st birthday—she was allegedly suffocated at a Syracuse Airbnb by Chacaguasay-Ilbis, a former schoolmate from Ecuador. Surveillance showed him carrying her limp body; prosecutors said he buried her in a shallow grave, then fled by Greyhound before turning himself in.
Open case study →Matthew Carney
Criminal homicide (alleged) — hit-and-run
Matthew Carney, owner of Nashville’s Smokin Thighs restaurant, was struck in a June 19, 2024, hit-and-run at his business and later died (July 4). Police charged Raigoz-Martinez—already sought in related theft/chase cases—with criminal homicide and evidence tampering.
Open case study →Trooper Christopher Gadd
Vehicular homicide (DUI)
On March 2, 2024, Trooper Christopher Gadd, 27, was parked on the I-5 shoulder for traffic enforcement when Benitez-Santana—impaired and driving over 100 mph—struck the patrol car from behind, killing Gadd.
Open case study →13-year-old girl (Kissena Park)
Rape / kidnapping / predatory sexual assault (alleged)
On June 13, 2024, in Kissena Park, Inga-Landi allegedly confronted a 13-year-old girl and boy with a machete/knife, tied their wrists together, gagged them, stole their phones, and raped the girl in a wooded area before fleeing. Neighbors later recognized him from police images and held him for arrest.
Open case study →Melissa Powell & Riordan Powell
Vehicular homicide (DUI)
On December 12, 2023, Menjivar drove an estimated 80–100 mph in a 40 mph zone near Broomfield High School and struck Melissa Powell’s SUV, killing her (46) and her son Riordan (16). His BAC was reported at about .249. Four days earlier he had been sentenced on prior DUIs to work-release but was awaiting a program bed.
Open case study →Deputy Alexis Hein-Nutz
Leaving the scene of a crash involving death
On September 18, 2022, Deputy Alexis Hein-Nutz, 24, was killed riding her motorcycle to work when Garcia-Gonzales failed to yield and struck her, then fled into a cornfield without rendering aid. He was arrested the next day.
Open case study →