U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has transferred Rajinder Kumar to Oregon custody to face manslaughter charges over a 2025 highway crash that killed two newlyweds.
ICE said a Deschutes County indictment lists two first-degree manslaughter charges against Kumar and three charges of recklessly endangering another person. He has pleaded not guilty, Lookout Eugene-Springfield reported.
Oregon State Police said Kumar’s tractor-trailer had jackknifed and stopped across both lanes of U.S. Highway 20 on Nov. 24, 2025. A westbound Subaru Outback struck the trailer. The car’s driver, William Micah Carter, 25, and passenger, Jennifer Lynn Lower, 24, died at the scene.
Police said their preliminary investigation was examining whether darkness and the absence of active emergency warning equipment contributed to the crash. Their assessment was preliminary, and the charges against Kumar remain allegations.
State police initially arrested Kumar on suspicion of criminally negligent homicide and reckless endangering. ICE said it arrested him on April 22 after his release from county custody. The agency said it had lodged an immigration detainer before that release.
Carter’s mother, Elizabeth Carter, had pressed for Kumar to face trial in Oregon before any deportation, Lookout Eugene-Springfield reported. ICE said it will pursue his immigration case after the state criminal proceedings.
