ICE arrests criminal illegal alien convicted in deadly Tennessee crash

MEMPHIS - ICE arrested Kelvin Mejia-Romero, a criminal illegal alien from Honduras, upon his release from the Northwest Correctional Complex near Memphis April 20. Mejia-Romero was released to ICE following his sentence for drunk driving that led to the death of a 66-year-old Nashville musician in a 2022 wrong-way crash.

He will remain in ICE custody pending removal.

"We're taking these public safety threats off the streets and out of jails every day," said acting ERO New Orleans Field Office Director Brian Acuna. "ICE will hold those who victimize our community accountable by enforcing our nation's immigration laws."

According to local law enforcement, Mejia-Romero was traveling east in the westbound lanes of Interstate 24 in Nashville around 2:45 a.m. Jan. 1, 2022, when he crashed into a pickup truck driven by Samuel Dismuke Sr. Police said Mejia-Romero told authorities he had consumed eight or nine beers before driving and showed signs of impairment.

Dismuke died at the scene. Following the crash, the victim's family told local media the longtime musician was on his way home after playing with his band.

"It was my father this time, but it very well could be next time you injure somebody from your own family, you never know," the victim's son said. "He had two convictions, but that doesn't necessarily mean that's the only two times he has done it. That's just the only two times he got caught, that's how I look at it."

Mejia-Romero's criminal record included prior DUI convictions before the early morning New Year's Day crash. In January 2022, he was convicted of vehicular homicide and sentenced to six years in prison.

Records show Mejia-Romero's most recent entry into the United States was in 2014. At the time, he had an approved travel authorization. Mejia-Romero applied for several U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services authorizations in 2017 and 2018. USCIS denied all applications. Mejia-Romero remained in the United States unlawfully.

The Trump administration is committed to restoring common sense and sanity to our nation's immigration system. Under President Donald J. Trump and Secretary Markwayne Mullin, the Department of Homeland Security will not gamble with the safety of Americans and our national security - as previous administrations have done - by allowing murderers, child rapists, gang members and other dangerous criminal illegal aliens to remain in our communities unvetted and unchecked.

Victims and families impacted by crimes linked to immigration may receive support from the Victims of Immigration Crime Engagement (VOICE) Office by contacting .