Justice Served: Illegal Immigrant Receives 20+ Year Sentence for Fatal Hit-and-Run of Sarah Root

An undocumented immigrant from Honduras, who fled the United States after causing a fatal accident while driving under the influence in Nebraska back in 2016, has been sentenced to over 20 years in prison.

On Monday, Eswin Mejia received a prison sentence ranging from 20 to 22 years following his conviction for motor vehicle homicide and evading arrest, according to an announcement by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

The incident occurred in January 2016 when Mejia, residing illegally in the U.S., crashed his vehicle into 21-year-old Sarah Root’s car at an Omaha, Nebraska stoplight. Root, originally from Iowa, succumbed to her injuries at the hospital.

Initially detained and charged, Mejia managed to flee the country after being released on bond. Subsequently, he was placed on the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) “Most Wanted” list.

Eswin Mejia is currently in custody after being extradited from Honduras to face charges related to the 2016 drunk driving death of Sarah Root, an Iowa resident. (Source: Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem)

At the time of his arrest, ICE said that Mejia was not an “enforcement priority.”

In March 2025, the Trump administration announced the extradition of Sarah’s killer from Honduras to the United States to face justice once and for all.

It came after Honduras reached an agreement with the United States to continue a century-old extradition treaty. It was the first time Honduras had ever extradited someone to the U.S. for homicide.

Homeland Security Investigations agents are pictured in Honduras during the extradition of Eswin Mejia to the United States last year. (Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem)

“The criminal illegal alien who stole Sarah Root’s life was just convicted to 21 years. Nothing will bring her back, but I am glad to see some justice for Sarah’s family,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said.

“I want to thank Homeland Security Investigations and our interagency law enforcement partners for extraditing Sarah’s killer and bringing him back to the U.S.,” Noem continued. “I also want to thank Senator Joni Ernst for her advocacy on behalf of Sarah and her family. Sarah should still be here today, and this illegal alien should have never been in our country in the first place. The Trump administration will always put the safety of Americans first.”

In the aftermath of the tragedy, Sarah’s Law was introduced in the United States Congress. It was eventually added as an amendment to the Laken Riley Act.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem hailed the conviction. (Getty Images/Alex Brandon)

“Today, an illegal immigrant who murdered young Iowan Sarah Root faced justice,” Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, wrote on X. “After her killer escaped the consequences of his crime for too long, the Root family can finally have closure. 

The senator thanked President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Noem “for making today possible.”

“While nothing can bring Sarah back, my Sarah’s Law will ensure no other family will have to endure what the Roots have,” Ernst added. 

Border agents first encountered Mejia in May 2013 when he arrived in Nogales, Ariz., and was designated as an unaccompanied child, according to an ICE response letter to then-Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., at the time. 

Mejia was transferred to the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which then sent him to Omaha in 2014 to live with his brother.

After his January 2016 arrest for motor vehicle homicide, ICE officials said they “encountered Mr. Mejia just once,” but they did not file a detainer.