A truck driver accused of causing a crash that killed three individuals in Virginia illegally entered the U.S. in the 1990s, according to federal law enforcement officials.
El Hadji Karamoko Ouattara, 58, an immigrant from Africa, faces charges related to a collision where a tractor-trailer veered off Interstate 81 and struck a minivan. Tragically, the crash resulted in the deaths of three people, including a 2-year-old child, while three others were injured, as reported by local media.
The victims were taken to a nearby hospital, but Lorraine Renee Williams, 65, Ebony Latasha Williams, 49, and Shaziyah Leslie, 2, succumbed to their injuries.
Additionally, a 63-year-old man, a 73-year-old man, and a 10-year-old girl were reported injured but did survive.
Initially, Ouattara faced a charge of reckless driving, but authorities have since escalated the charges to three counts of manslaughter following the incident on December 22.
His residence is in Montgomery Village, Maryland, as stated by the Roanoke County Sheriff’s Office.
Federal officials have clarified that Ouattara is a naturalized U.S. citizen from the Ivory Coast. Though he entered the country without authorization decades ago, he later secured a green card and eventually became a naturalized citizen.
This incident has sparked increasing concern about untrained drivers who are in the U.S. illegally operating on American roads. Recently, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy addressed ongoing efforts with the Department of Homeland Security to address the rise of illegal immigrants obtaining commercial driver’s licenses without proper oversight, which has led to fatal accidents.
Earlier this year, following a deadly incident involving an Indian national with a commercial driver’s license from California, Duffy indicated that the Department of Transportation (DOT) is pushing states to adhere to stricter regulations regarding the issuing of commercial licenses. California, in particular, has withdrawn 17,000 non-domicile CDL licenses deemed problematic.
Duffy emphasized the DOT’s commitment to safety, stating, “We’re going to use every resource, every tool that the DOT has to make sure we have the right people in place, fully qualified, fully licensed, fluent in English, to maximize safety.”
