A 38-year-old man is facing charges of driving under the influence, driving without a license and felony hit-and-run after he crashed into a family vehicle, sending a 6-year-old boy to the hospital, NBC San Diego reported. The driver responsible for the collision, Constantino Banda, had been deported at least 15 times in the last 15 years, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesperson told the news station.
The car accident occurred Saturday in San Diego’s San Ysidro district, as Lennox Lake and his parents were returning from Disneyland, according to NBC San Diego.
The family was a block away from home, CNN reported. San Ysidro is less than 10 miles from the US-Mexico border.
“We heard the tires screeching, but it wasn’t like the screeching of stopping. It was like the screeching of accelerating into the turn. I saw bright lights and the next thing, I know I woke up with airbags deployed,” said Lennox’s father, Benjamin Lake.
Lennox suffered a fractured skull and bleeding from his nose and ears, NBC San Diego reported. He was strapped into a car seat in the backseat of the car at the time of the crash.
The back seat on the driver's side of the vehicle took the brunt of the impact, KGTV reported.
ICE Public Affairs Officer Lauren Mack told NBC Banda has been deported to Mexico at least 15 times since 2002. The most recent incident of repatriation was in January.
Banda, who is being held on $100,000 bail, is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune.
Lennox was listed in serious condition at a local hospital Tuesday.
According to Cheryl Lake, Lennox's grandmother, his family and doctors are "cautiously optimistic" that he will make a full recovery, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported.
Lennox's family will be eligible for help from the Victims of Immigration Crime Engagement, a new office created by President Donald Trump that helps victims of crimes committed by unauthorized immigrants.
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