Woman hospitalized, illegal immigrant in ICE custody after horrific hit and run

Tim Dunn, Boston Herald on Dec 10, 2025

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BOSTON — An illegal immigrant from Peru with a history of reckless driving is now in ICE custody after allegedly hitting an Everett woman with his car so hard her shoes and pants came off before fleeing the scene Sunday morning, only to be ordered held on just $2,500 bail.

Immigration officials confirmed with the Boston Herald that the suspect, Brando Diaz-Sanchez, 23, is now in custody at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Burlington after being held at the Middlesex County House of Corrections. ICE Boston Spokesperson James Covington says the suspect was taken from the House of Corrections and into ICE custody before he could post bail.

Everett Police say Diaz-Sanchez allegedly struck the 63-year old woman with his car as she was walking near the 7/11 store on Broadway Street, leaving her with “serious injuries” before fleeing the area. The victim was rushed to Massachusetts General Hospital, where police say she has been intubated with a “brain bleed and significant injury to her body.”

As of the latest update to the police report filed Sunday night, the victim was listed in serious condition.

Everett police report they were able to track down the blue Acura sedan involved in the crash within 30 minutes, locating it parked outside a home on Gledhill Avenue, where they found Diaz-Sanchez and brought him to the police department for questioning. Diaz-Sanchez admitted to hitting the woman and fleeing the scene, and was formally arrested at the police department, according to the police report.

“During the interview Brando gave a detailed description of the accident,” Detective Kristopher Gaff noted in his police report. “Brando stated that he was looking straight ahead and felt and heard the impact of the victim. Brando stated that the person hit the windshield. Brando stated he was nervous and that is why he fled the scene.”

Fingerprints of Diaz-Sanchez revealed that he was charged with reckless driving as recently as September under the name Deyvis Diaz-Sanchez, police added.

“A check of Brando’s fingerprints after booking showed he was previously fingerprinted under the name Deyvis Diaz-Sanchez (DOB 02/21/2002). Deyvis still has no license and was charged on 9/20/2025 for two counts of reckless operations, 2 counts of unlicensed operation and 2 counts of fail to stop/yield,” the detective wrote in his report.

The Herald has requested more information about the charges brought against Diaz-Sanchez in September from the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office.

Video footage of the crash, as described by Everett police in their report, shows the Acura driving at a high-rate of speed when it crashed into the victim, throwing her over the hood and roof of the car “a considerable distance,” which officers estimated to be about 78-feet.

The victim had been using the crosswalk at the time and had activated the crosswalk lights. Police say the car never stopped after striking the victim, instead continuing in the oncoming lane with “significant damage to the windshield” before running a red light and leaving the area.

The victim was struck at such a high-rate of speed, in fact, that her shoes and pants came flying off during the impact, according to witnesses and responding officers. The police report states that when officers first arrived on scene, they approached the victim laying in the roadway “with a constant stream of blood coming from her face.”

The crash comes amid the Trump Administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration, with ICE agents arresting and deporting thousands of illegal immigrants across the country since President Donald Trump was sworn in back in January.

ICE operations in Massachusetts have led to backlash from activists and politicians on the state and federal level, including Democratic Congressman Seth Moulton (MA-06), who feuded with Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons last week over immigration enforcement and reports of inhumane treatment at the Burlington facility.

In Dedham, St. Susanna Parish made national headlines when Rev. Stephen Josoma replaced Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus with a sign reading “ICE was here” at its Nativity scene.

Massachusetts has a history of notable hit-and-run crashes involving illegal immigrants. In 2023, 46-year old Epharo Gilbert, of Raynham, was struck and killed in West Bridgewater by Juan Leonardo Parra Altamirano, an illegal immigrant from Ecuador who had been living in Brockton.

In 2011, 23-year old Matthew Denice was riding his motorcycle when he was struck and killed by Nicolas Dutan Guaman, another illegal immigrant, also from Ecuador, while he was driving drunk in Milford. Guaman had dragged Denice’s body for a quarter-mile before fleeing the area. He was convicted in 2014 and deported in 2023.

Malden District Court Judge James Murphy set the $2,500 bail for Diaz-Sanchez. He was appointed in 2021 as an Associate Justice of Newton District Court by former Gov. Charlie Baker. Last month, he was sworn in as First Justice of Malden District Court.

Diaz-Sanchez has been charged with leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident with personal injury, operating to endanger, unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, a crosswalk violation, a red light violation, and a marked lanes violation.

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