LUBBOCK, Texas — Rassian Comer was federally indicted in connection with a deadly crash that killed a 7-year-old girl, her grandmother and two immigrants in 2023, federal and state officials announced during a news conference in Lubbock on Wednesday.
Officials said Comer was accused of conspiring to transport 11 illegal immigrants from Sheffield, Texas to San Antonio. Ryan Raybould, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, said Comer was working with a smuggling organization from Mexico.
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On March 12, 2023, a trooper with the Texas Department of Public Safety tried to pull over Comer’s speeding pickup truck. Instead of stopping, the truck hit speeds of more than 100 mph and lost the trooper on I-10.
At one point during the chase, Raybould said Comer went live on Facebook and showed police vehicles trying to stop him. He then panned the camera to the speedometer, showing the truck going 100 mph.
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A deputy with the Crockett County Sheriff’s Office saw the pickup and started another pursuit. Officials said the pickup took the exit towards Ozona and approached an intersection. The light was red, but the truck went through the intersection going more than 80 mph and crashed into a red pickup. A grandmother and granddaughter, identified by Crockett County court records as Maria Socorro Alvarez Tambunga, 71, and Emilia Brooke Tambunga, 7, died at the scene of the crash.
Officials also said two of the illegal immigrants in Comer’s truck passed away. The other nine suffered severe injuries. A semi-automatic handgun was also found in the vehicle…