DNYUZ
  • Home
  • News
    • U.S.
    • World
    • Politics
    • Opinion
    • Business
    • Crime
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Science
  • Entertainment
    • Culture
    • Music
    • Movie
    • Television
    • Theater
    • Gaming
    • Sports
  • Tech
    • Apps
    • Autos
    • Gear
    • Mobile
    • Startup
  • Lifestyle
    • Arts
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Health
    • Travel
No Result
View All Result
DNYUZ
No Result
View All Result
Home News

Illegal immigrant quietly handed slap-on-the-wrist sentence for hit-and-run that killed University of South Carolina student

October 9, 2025
in News
Illegal immigrant quietly handed  slap-on-the-wrist sentence for hit-and-run that killed University of South Carolina student
494
SHARES
1.4k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

An illegal immigrant who killed a University of South Carolina student in a horrific hit-and-run crash was quietly handed a slap-on-the-wrist sentence this summer — despite the tragedy sparking national outrage.

Rosali Fernandez-Cruz, 24, has been serving out his one-year stint at Kirkland Correctional Institution in Columbia since August, when three of his charges were discreetly dropped and he pleaded guilty to the remaining most serious count for killing 21-year-old Nathaniel Baker, according to jail records and reports.

“The judge decided the sentence, which was one year,” a spokesperson for Republican South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson told Fox News, adding that Baker’s forgiving family was consulted before the lenient sentence was given and wanted to keep the agreement hush-hush.

Mugshot of Rosali Fernandez-Cruz.
Rosali Fernandez-Cruz, 24, was sentenced in August to one year in jail for killing 21-year-old Nathaniel Baker. City of Columbia Police Department

“They did not want this to be politicized or highly publicized. They were in agreement with the guilty plea and sentence.”

Fernandez-Cruz, a native of El Salvador who has been on the run from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement since 2018, was also credited with 131 days served — despite fatal hit-and-runs carrying up to a 25-year maximum sentence in the Palmetto State, The State reported.

A framed photo of a smiling young man holding a puppy, surrounded by bouquets of flowers and candles.
Nathaniel Baker was a junior at the University of South Carolina. NEWS19

He is expected to walk free on March 2, 2026, according to the South Carolina Department of Corrections.

Wilson’s office did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.

Fernandez-Cruz was nabbed shortly after failing to yield and striking Baker, a USC junior and Phi Gamma Delta fraternity member, who was riding his motorcycle near the college’s Columbia campus.

Rosali Fernandez-Cruz, a man with dark hair and a short beard, wearing a yellow shirt, looks out from behind a metal grate.
Fernandez-Cruz is expected to walk free in March 2026, jail records show. NEWS19

The careless motorist, who was allegedly driving without a license, fled the scene and later abandoned his pickup truck before being captured by a nearby cop — who then notified ICE of the arrest after his name was found in the National Crime Information Center database, police said at the time.

Fernandez-Cruz illegally crossed the US-Mexico border on an unknown date and was later arrested by Border Patrol in Texas in 2016, a Department of Homeland Security source told The Post in April.

Two years later, a North Carolina immigration judge ordered that he be sent back to his home country.

Baker’s family reportedly forgave the illegal immigrant for the hit-and-run and agreed to the lenient prison term. uofscfiji/instagram

The migrant was charged with hit-and-run resulting in death, failure to give information and render aid, failure to yield the right of way, and driving without a license.

He only pleaded guilty to hit-and-run resulting in death — with the other charges reportedly dismissed.

It’s unclear whether he will be deported back to El Salvador once his jail term is complete.

DHS and ICE did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.

The post Illegal immigrant quietly handed slap-on-the-wrist sentence for hit-and-run that killed University of South Carolina student appeared first on New York Post.

Tags: Colleges and universitiesDeathshit and runIllegal ImmigrantsSouth Carolina
Share198Tweet124Share
Netflix’s ‘Boots’: The Journey to Becoming a Marine as a Gay Man in 1990
News

Netflix’s ‘Boots’: The Journey to Becoming a Marine as a Gay Man in 1990

by The Daily Beast
October 9, 2025

The year is 1990, and closeted gay teen Cameron has just had his head shaved and clothes stripped, and he’s ...

Read more
News

Chicago, Portland fight Trump’s National Guard deployments in court hearings Thursday

October 9, 2025
News

Argentina-Puerto Rico soccer match relocated from Chicago to Florida amid immigration unrest

October 9, 2025
News

Contributor: How Lou Gehrig’s life taught me to fight for Prop. 50

October 9, 2025
Economy

Pope Leo blasts economy that marginalizes poor while wealthy live in bubble of luxury

October 9, 2025
Calmes: George Washington would be spinning in his grave

Calmes: George Washington would be spinning in his grave

October 9, 2025
Women’s Health Should Be a Bipartisan Priority

Women’s Health Should Be a Bipartisan Priority

October 9, 2025
Zelenskyy: If Trump gives us Tomahawks, we’ll lobby for Nobel Peace Prize

Zelenskyy: If Trump gives us Tomahawks, we’ll lobby for Nobel Peace Prize

October 9, 2025

Copyright © 2025.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    • U.S.
    • World
    • Politics
    • Opinion
    • Business
    • Crime
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Science
  • Entertainment
    • Culture
    • Gaming
    • Music
    • Movie
    • Sports
    • Television
    • Theater
  • Tech
    • Apps
    • Autos
    • Gear
    • Mobile
    • Startup
  • Lifestyle
    • Arts
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Health
    • Travel

Copyright © 2025.