United States Immigration And Customs Enforcement arrests Rajinder Kumar after April 2 release
United States Immigration And Customs Enforcement arrested Rajinder Kumar on April 22 after Oregon officials released him from jail on April 2. Kumar, a 32-year-old man from India, is being held at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma while deportation proceedings move ahead.
Rajinder Kumar And The Oregon Crash
The case stems from a Nov. 24 crash on U.S. Highway 20 in Deschutes County that killed William Micah Carter and Jennifer Lynn Lower. The couple had been married for 16 days. DHS said Kumar allegedly jackknifed his semi-truck and trailer, blocked both lanes of the highway, and then a Subaru Outback collided with the truck.
Kumar faces charges of criminally negligent homicide and reckless endangerment. DHS said he entered the U.S. illegally near Lukeville, Arizona, in November 2022, was later released into the country by the Biden administration, received work authorization in 2023, and obtained a commercial driver’s license in California.
DHS And Oregon Officials
DHS said Oregon officials declined to cooperate with ICE and released Kumar on April 2. Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis tied that release to the federal arrest, saying, “Instead of cooperating with ICE law enforcement, Oregon sanctuary politicians RELEASED him from jail back into American communities.”
Bis also said, “This illegal alien was issued a CDL by Gavin Newsom’s California,” and added, “He then went on to recklessly drive a truck on America’s highways and KILL two honeymooners.” The statements place the focus on two separate decisions: state jail release and the later federal immigration arrest.
Northwest ICE Processing Center
Kumar’s custody now sits with ICE in Tacoma, where the immigration case is proceeding alongside the Oregon charges. The immediate consequence is that the criminal case, the federal immigration detention, and the deportation process now move on separate tracks, with Kumar held by federal authorities after the April 22 arrest.
For Carter and Lower’s families, the key change is that the defendant they say caused the deadly crash is no longer out of custody after the Oregon release. The federal detention gives ICE control over him while the criminal case continues.
