ICE Asks Florida Not to Release Illegal Alien from Venezuela Charged in Fatal Vehicle Collision that Killed 82-Year-Old Grandmother

 News Release:

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY Office of Public Affairs

ICE Asks Florida Not to Release Illegal Alien from Venezuela Charged in Fatal Vehicle Collision that Killed 82-Year-Old Grandmother The illegal alien’s front-seat passenger was granted TPS by the Biden Administration and has since been removed from the U.S. WASHINGTON – The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the following statement after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) lodged a detainer for an illegal alien charged with driving without a valid license and causing a death after fatally hitting an 82-year-old grandmother in a grocery store parking lot in Florida. According to local reporting, on May 17, Carlos Suarez Contreras of Venezuela backed a vehicle into 82-year-old grandmother Deborah Murphy, who was walking back to her car on a crosswalk outside a Publix in Panama City Beach, Florida. After Suarez Contreras struck Murphy with his vehicle, he reportedly continued backing up. Suarez Contreras and Luis Sanabria Perez, the front-seat passenger, were both determined to be in the country illegally. The victim: 82-year-old Deborah Murphy “This senseless tragedy was 100% preventable because these illegal aliens should have NEVER been in the country. One death at the hands of an illegal alien is one too many,” said Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis. “Thanks to our law enforcement partners at the federal and local levels, the illegal alien responsible for this tragic death will now face justice for his crimes. ICE has lodged a detainer asking officials in Florida to turn this illegal alien over to ICE custody so that he can be removed from our country. Meanwhile, the illegal alien passenger, who was granted TPS by the Biden Administration, has since been removed from the country.” The driver: Carlos Suarez Contreras Suarez Contreras was arrested on May 17 by the Bay County Sheriff’s Office, and ICE lodged a detainer for him on May 18. Suarez Contreras was originally encountered by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) near Blythe, California in November 2021. The Biden Administration then RELEASED him into the country. The passenger: Luis Sanabria Perez The passenger of the vehicle, Sanabria Perez, also from Venezuela, was arrested on May 17 and was booked into ICE custody on May 18. He was admitted to the U.S. on September 4, 2019 as a Temporary Visitor with authorization to remain in the U.S. until March 3, 2020. He remained in the U.S. beyond that date and applied for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) in August 2021, which was granted in June 2022 under the Biden Administration. On November 20, 2025, his TPS was terminated by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). On June 8, 2026, Sanabria Perez was removed from the U.S.

# # #