The wrong-way driver who killed an off-duty Las Vegas police officer earlier this month was in the United States illegally, federal officials told local media.
On December 12, Fernando Jimenez Jimenez, 31, drove a Ford F150 the wrong way on the northbound side of Interstate 15, striking the Toyota Corolla of Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) Colton Pulsifer, 29, in the process. , the The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported. Both men died.
Jimenez Jimenez, a Mexican citizen, entered the United States twice in 2019 and “was returned to Mexico with an expedited removal order,” a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesperson told local FOX5.
In January 2020, Jimenez Jimenez applied to enter the United States with Customs and Border Protection in Brownsville, Texas, but an immigration judge ordered him deported in December 2021, ICE said.
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Jimenez Jimenez had containers of alcohol and marijuana in his truck when the accident occurred, Nevada State Police said He told FOX5. Toxicology results are pending.
Pulsipher has been with LVMPD since 2017 and was assigned to the Tourist Safety Division’s Traffic Bureau “where he has worked tirelessly to protect and serve our community,” LVMPD said on Facebook. He was returning home after finishing his shift when the accident occurred.
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He left behind a wife and three young children, LVMPD said on Facebook.
A subsequent department post included photos from his memorial service in Moapa, where he lived, on December 18.
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“Officer Pulsipher served with courage, integrity and dedication, always putting the safety of others before his own,” the LVMPD post said. “Be calm, Officer Pulsipher. We get it from here.”