Ambulance crash suspect could be deported pending legal case

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Authorities say a man accused of drunken driving in a fatal ambulance crash in North Carolina is subject to deportation pending the criminal case’s outcome.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement issued a detainer that would allow them to remove Jose Martin Duran Romero if he’s released from local custody. ICE said Tuesday that the suspect is a citizen of El Salvador.

A detainer is issued when a suspect lacks legal immigration status or otherwise fits criteria for removal.

Police say Romero’s car hit the ambulance carrying a 3-year-old boy, causing it to overturn. The boy later died in a hospital.

Romero was charged with driving while intoxicated and without a license. Police didn’t immediately return a message Tuesday asking whether his charges would be upgraded because of the boy’s death.