GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The man who died in a car crash Sunday after fleeing from a traffic stop conducted by ICE was not the intended target of the stop, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
On Thursday, the department released a statement providing new information on the death of Mario David Coronado Juarez.
The department said ICE officers had attempted to stop a car that morning registered to "a known criminal illegal alien" who had multiple alcohol-related driving offenses and was also wanted in Guatemala for a drunk and disorderly charge.
But when officers attempted to confirm the identity of the driver, DHS said they drove away from the traffic stop "at a high rate of speed."
"In the interest of public safety," according to DHS, officers did not chase the car but a short time later saw smoke and found that it had crashed into a tree and caught on fire.
Officers tried to help the driver and put out the fire until the Grand Rapids Police Department and Fire Department arrived on the scene.
The driver, who has since been identified as Mario David Coronado Juarez, died at the scene.
DHS said Juarez was not the registered owner of the car and not the intended target of the traffic stop.
The department said Juarez had been living in the country without legal permission and, in 2021, had been removed from the country by U.S. Border Patrol but had reentered at a later unknown date and time.
As part of its statement, DHS said Juarez was believed to have been traveling "well over 100 miles per hour" at the time of the crash.
"Resisting officers and evading arrest is dangerous for our officers, illegal aliens, and the public," the department said.
Juarez, 36, a husband and father of three, had been working construction jobs in Grand Rapids for more than five years at the time of his death, sending the money he earned back to his family in Guatemala.
Watch Sam Landstra's original report on Juarez
Michigan State Police is investigating what led to the deadly crash and the Grand Rapids Police Department, who is also investigating, has said it had "no involvement in and no knowledge of the situation" before being called to the crash site.
Leaders and lawmakers
On Thursday, Grand Rapids Mayor David LaGrand released a statement on Juarez's death.
"Earlier this week, we lost a valued member of our community, Mario David Coronado Juarez," the statement said in part. "His life deserves to be remembered with dignity, and his family deserves compassion, answers, and justice."
LaGrand also said that "while we don't know what Mario was thinking and feeling, we know that his death happened in the context of a national effort to create fear among our immigrant neighbors."
Earlier this week, U.S. Representative Hillary Scholten's office said she sent a letter to ICE's acting director, demanding answers on the agents' actions.
"No traffic stop should end with a fatality," said Scholten. "Something went wrong, and we need to know what and how."
No one should lose their life in a traffic stop. My office has sent a letter to ICE demanding answers and won't stop until we get them. pic.twitter.com/eTx6umIAjV
— Congresswoman Hillary Scholten (@RepScholten) September 22, 2026
A vigil for Juarez is set to be held at the scene of the crash on Thursday.
