Tragedy on I-264: Immigrant Communities Grapple with Fear and Enforcement
By: Clerfania Previlon
A 24-year-old man died after being struck by a car on Interstate 264, a major corridor in Norfolk often crowded with commuters, last Thursday. The man, Jose Castro-Rivera, ran into traffic in an attempt to flee from ICE.
WTKR reports that ICE agents performed CPR but were unable to save Castro-Rivera.
“This horrendous outcome could have been prevented had Castro-Rivera complied with our officers,” an ICE spokesperson said, per News 3. WTKR reports that Castro-Rivera was in America illegally, and three other detained individuals were informed of his death.
Incidents involving individuals fleeing ICE have been increasingly reported across Virginia and the U.S., highlighting growing tensions between immigration enforcement and local communities. Locals have expressed concern and fear surrounding the situation.
“I think fear plays a big part in immigrant communities in both political and social aspects. Politically, they are terrified, policies and arrests are being made against not just immigrants, but also native born peoples.” Josephine Major, a first-year political science major, said. “The enforcement of immigration regulation is an attempt to erase and eradicate a huge part of American history. It won’t stop with immigrants. History always repeats itself.”
Andrew Reigel, an immigration attorney located in Virginia Beach, noted that his office has seen a rise in calls from immigrants concerned about potential detainments, and encourages community members to understand their rights and seek legal guidance per WTKR.
Similarly, advocacy groups are speaking out. Eduardo Zelaya, a spokesman for We Are Casa, an organization dedicated to protecting immigrant rights, said, “We are being targeted. This goes beyond ideology — it’s transforming into policy. Just because of the way we look or if we have an accent, we are being targeted,” according to WTKR.
A senior DHS official shared the full statement below per News 3:
"On Oct. 23, ICE officers made a vehicle stop as part of a targeted, intelligence-based immigration enforcement operation. Upon determining that the occupants were in the United States illegally, officers began detaining the occupants of the targeted vehicle. However, one of the vehicle's occupants, Jose Castro-Rivera resisted heavily and fled the scene onto a busy highway, creating a significant safety risk to himself and the general public. Unfortunately, a passing vehicle struck Castro-Rivera.
One of our ICE officers administered CPR to Castro-Rivera in an attempt to keep him alive. Unfortunately, Castro-Rivera perished. The officer then informed the three detained aliens that their friend had deceased. He then grieved and prayed with them.
The death of this illegal alien is a direct result of every politician, activist and reporter who continue to spread propaganda and misinformation about ICE’s mission and ways to avoid detention, that has emboldened illegal aliens to resist our federal law enforcement officers. Sadly, this is the tragic result of such resistance. This horrendous outcome could have been prevented had Castro-Rivera complied with our officers.”
