Thread: ICE Confirms Illegal Suspect in DUI Crash That Killed 8-Year-Old | Maryah Johnson

ICE Confirms Illegal Alien Suspect in Georgia DUI Crash That Killed 8-Year-Old Girl

https://yournews.com/2025/11/20/5032...ui-crash-that/

by yourNEWS Media Newsroom | Nov 20, 2025



An illegal alien accused of drunk driving and fleeing the scene is facing multiple felony charges after a fatal collision that claimed the life of an eight-year-old girl in Georgia.

By your NEWS Media Newsroom

Authorities say an illegal alien is behind a deadly DUI crash that killed a child and seriously injured her mother in DeKalb County, Georgia. On Tuesday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced it had lodged a detainer against Jose Alejandro Cuahuizo-Varela, who remains in custody with the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office.

The tragedy occurred on Sept. 6, when Latazamisha Nunn was pulling out of an apartment complex in Dunwoody. Investigators say a Toyota pickup truck driven by Cuahuizo-Varela slammed into Nunn’s Honda, fatally injuring her daughter, Maryah Johnson, 8. Both were rushed to local hospitals, but Maryah did not survive.

Cuahuizo-Varela allegedly fled the scene but was captured shortly afterward by local police. Jail records show he has been charged with first-degree homicide by vehicle, serious injury by vehicle, reckless driving, hit and run, driving under the influence of alcohol, and driving without a valid license.

Disturbingly, Cuahuizo-Varela was already facing nearly identical charges stemming from a 2023 DUI hit-and-run in Brookhaven, where he reportedly injured multiple people. Despite that case, he remained at large before the September crash.

The child’s mother, Nunn, told WSB-TV she blames ICE for failing to detain Cuahuizo-Varela after his first arrest. “If ICE would’ve done its job in the first place and picked him up, my daughter wouldn’t be in this type of predicament,” Nunn said. “If you all retrieved him the first time it happened and he sent three people to the hospital, my daughter would still be alive right here.”

A related X post circulating on social media has drawn renewed attention to the case and criticism of federal immigration enforcement failures.

ICE has since confirmed that Cuahuizo-Varela “illegally entered the United States.” No further details about his prior encounters with immigration authorities have been released.

The incident marks the latest in a series of high-profile cases involving repeat DUI offenders living unlawfully in the U.S., reigniting debate over immigration detainers and local cooperation with federal authorities.