Mom's anguish after girl, 8, 'killed by illegal migrant in alleged DUI crash'
Jackie Cruz Acencio, her husband and their three children were driving in San Diego County when a reportedly intoxicated driver crossed the yellow line and rammed them head on.
By JENSEN BIRD
Published: 06:33 GMT, 3 January 2026 | Updated: 08:07 GMT, 3 January 2026
An eight-year-old girl was killed in a tragic car crash when an undocumented immigrant was allegedly drunk driving - and the girl's mother said she has 'no sympathy' for the suspect.
The collision took place when the girl was traveling through San Diego with her family on November 30 and an intoxicated driver crossed the yellow line and rammed into them.
Jackie Cruz Acencio said her husband Oscar and their three children were headed home from a Thanksgiving celebrating.
The fiery crash left Oscar critically injured and killed their eight-year-old daughter, Arya. The tortured mother remembered the moment she realized she lost her daughter in the wreckage.
'I didn't see her breathing she just looked like she was sleeping,' she said in an interview with Fox Digital. 'But at that moment I wasn't thinking "Oh she's dead."'
Cruz Acencio said she is 'still processing' her daughter's death.
The alleged driver was 25-year-old Bryan Alva-Rodriguez, a Guatemalan citizen.
Eight year old Arya Cruz Acencio was killed after an alleged drunk driver rammed into her family's car
Mother Jackie Cruz Acencio said she is 'still processing' her daughter's tragic death
The horrifying crash occurred as the family was on their way home from a Thanksgiving celebration in San Diego county
Alva-Rodriguez was charged with murder, vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence.
He reportedly entered the country in February 2018 through Calexico, California. He was charged with two prior DUIs in 2020 and 2021.
An immigration judge ordered him to leave the country in 2023, but he did not, per Fox Digital.
'I care very deeply for these people that want to have a better life' said Cruz Acencio.
'But I have no sympathy for the driver that hit me and my family. I'm angry and he shouldn't have been here in the first place.'
Alva-Rodriguez's felony charges could mean several years in prison or even a life sentence. He was arraigned while in the hospital being treated for his own injuries.