Update: On Aug. 6, 2026, Alexis Otoniel Hernandez-Araujo pleaded guilty to one count of causing death and three counts of causing serious bodily injury while operating intoxicated. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison with credit for time served.
Original story (published July 17, 2025): One year after a car crash killed a man and injured two children and a pregnant woman, federal officials have arrested the man allegedly responsible.
FBI Indianapolis, working in coordination with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), arrested Alexis Otoniel Hernandez-Araujo, 26, on July 17. The El Salvadoran man was in the United States illegally and wanted on charges of reckless homicide and multiple related offenses, law enforcement said.
According to court documents, on July 6, 2024, Hernandez-Araujo was speeding under the influence in the 1200 block of Reisner Street when he struck another vehicle driven by a pregnant woman. The driver and a 14-year-old passenger were seriously injured. A five-year-old in the backseat sustained a skull fracture and a broken hip.
Hernandez-Araujo’s 19-year-old brother, a passenger in Hernandez-Araujo’s vehicle, was ejected from the car and pronounced dead at the scene.
At the time of the crash, Hernandez-Araujo’s blood alcohol content was reportedly over the legal limit of 0.08.
Jade Jackson is a Public Safety Reporter for the Indianapolis Star. You can email her at Jade.Jackson@IndyStar.com and follow her on X, formerly Twitter @IAMJADEJACKSON.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: FBI and ICE arrest El Salvadoran man for July 2024 crash that killed his brother
Reporting by Jade Jackson, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Jade Jackson, Indianapolis Star | USA TODAY Network
