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Illegal Alien in Loudoun County Accused of Running Over Grandmother Had California Driver License

** None of the current Elected Officials of the democrat party have offered condolences. Suhas Subramanyam who is currently running for the 10th District Congressional Seat has not commented on illegal aliens in his county.
** Mike Clancy who is running for the 10th Congressional Seat in Virginia has condemned the actions of this illegal immigrant.

Last week, an undocumented immigrant allegedly stole a woman’s vehicle and then fatally ran her over outside a 7-Eleven in Virginia. This suspect had obtained a driver’s license in California, one of approximately 16 states that permit undocumented migrants to obtain licenses.

The incident occurred on July 28, when 54-year-old Melody Waldecker was leaving the convenience store in Sterling. The suspect hit her with her own car and fled the scene. Waldecker was pronounced dead on-site.

On Wednesday, the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office identified the suspect as 21-year-old Jose Aguilar-Martinez, a Salvadoran national in the country illegally.

“This is a horrific tragedy, and we mourn the death of Melody Waldecker as the result of the heinous actions by a suspect in our nation illegally,” Sheriff Mike Chapman said in a press release.

Melody Waldecker, a mother of four and grandmother to eight, was struck and killed by her own car outside a store in Sterling, Virginia, on July 28, 2024. She is pictured with her children and grandchildren. Inset: Jose Aguilar-Martinez, the suspect. [More Facebook/GoFundMe/Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office].

According to a GoFundMe set up to support her family, Waldecker was a mother of four and grandmother to eight.

Aguilar-Martinez hit Waldecker around 11:39 a.m. on Sunday and was arrested shortly after. He was charged with felony carjacking and is being held at the Loudoun County Adult Detention Center without bond, with additional charges anticipated.

The sheriff told local outlet ABC 7 that Waldecker had traveled from her home in Maryland to visit her mother, who is in a rehabilitation nursing home in Loudoun.

“[She] came out to help her out and the next thing you know she comes out of the 7-Eleven and that’s the end of her life. Tragic. Should’ve never happened,” the sheriff told the outlet.

While the suspect had been living in Sterling recently, he had a driver’s license from California, with a Los Angeles address listed. Undocumented migrants are allowed to apply for a license in some states without proof of legal presence in the country.

“The fact that he had a California driver’s license is perplexing to me,” Sheriff Chapman told reporters.

Local media reported that the suspect was arrested last month on a public intoxication charge, and the sheriff’s office alerted ICE at the time that he was in the country illegally. ICE did not issue a detainer after the public intoxication arrest, according to Chapman.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has since issued a detainer for Aguilar-Martinez, meaning they will take custody of the suspect at a later date.

“Entering the United States without authorization is a violation of federal law, and those who do so may be subject to administrative arrest, and in some cases, criminal prosecution,” ICE stated.

The Loudoun Sheriff’s office said that it regularly cooperates with Homeland Security Investigations and ICE, who have issued 479 detainers for non-citizens arrested in the county over fiscal years 2023 and 2024. 248 had been retrieved by ICE, with 96 deported so far.

“This is another reminder of why it is essential that localities collaborate with our federal counterparts charged with enforcing U.S. immigration laws,” Sheriff Chapman added.

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