A 9-month-old boy is dead and his mother and 5-year-old sister are hospitalized after an unlicensed driver who entered the United States illegally allegedly struck the family in a New Jersey grocery store parking lot.
Authorities have charged 20-year-old Guatemalan national Maria Cobon-Guzman with manslaughter, assault by auto, and operating a vehicle without ever having a valid driver’s license while involved in a fatal crash.
The tragedy is drawing additional scrutiny because Cobon-Guzman reportedly crossed the southern border illegally in 2023, was released into the United States during the Biden administration, and had been ordered deported by an immigration judge shortly before the deadly crash.
A Family’s Trip to the Store Turns Deadly
Police say the horrific incident unfolded around noon on August 28 in Ocean County, New Jersey.
A mother was walking through a grocery store parking lot with her 5-year-old daughter and 9-month-old son when Cobon-Guzman allegedly struck all three with a vehicle.
The victims were rushed to a nearby hospital. The infant was pronounced dead, while his mother and sister remained hospitalized in stable condition.
Cobon-Guzman was subsequently arrested and charged.
But authorities also arrested 22-year-old Mexican national Ariadana Lazaro-Flores, who allegedly allowed Cobon-Guzman to drive despite knowing she did not have a driver’s license.
Lazaro-Flores was charged with knowingly engaging in conduct creating a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury.
Deportation Order Reportedly Came Weeks Before Crash
The immigration history surrounding the case is now fueling outrage.
According to Border Hawk News, Cobon-Guzman illegally crossed the southern border in 2023 and was subsequently released into the country by the Biden administration. A federal immigration judge reportedly ordered her deported less than a month before the fatal crash.
Lazaro-Flores reportedly attempted to cross the southern border five times in October 2023 and was returned to Mexico after each attempt. She later allegedly succeeded in entering the United States illegally.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement has reportedly lodged detainers against both women.
The case is likely to renew the national fight over what happens when migrants who enter the country illegally are released into the interior and later become subject to removal orders.
A Department of Homeland Security official placed the blame squarely on the previous administration’s immigration policies, telling Border Hawk News that the baby would still be alive had Cobon-Guzman not been released into the United States.
DHS is now urging the Ocean County Jail to honor ICE’s detainers so that both women can be transferred to federal immigration custody.
For one New Jersey family, however, that debate comes far too late.
A routine walk through a grocery store parking lot ended with a mother and daughter in the hospital and a 9-month-old child dead.