An undocumented immigrant from Haiti, Frank Anderson Bazil, has been accused of causing a traffic accident in Indianapolis, United States, resulting in the death of one child and injuring another. He was apprehended after fleeing and was mistakenly labeled as a US citizen on the public inmate dashboard.
According to online court records, Franck Anderson Bazil, a 31-year-old Haitian residing in Indianapolis, was formally charged on October 6 with one count of hit-and-run causing death and one count of hit-and-run causing moderate or severe bodily injury.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that the man was erroneously identified as a US citizen due to possessing a Social Security card.
In a lengthy statement released on Monday, the MCSO explained that he was wrongly identified as a citizen because prison staff found his valid Indiana driver’s license and Social Security card.
The statement indicated that due to the supervisor’s belief that there was an error in the data input, both the “citizenship” and “country of birth” fields were changed to “United States” to correct what was thought to be a mistake, which the supervisor later acknowledged.
Bazil was arrested by the US Customs and Border Protection for illegal entry in January 2024 and subsequently obtained a Social Security card in February of that year.
Furthermore, immigration lawyer Dallin Lykins emphasized that having a Social Security number does not equate to citizenship, highlighting common misunderstandings in such cases. He clarified that possession of these documents does not automatically confer US citizenship.
The circumstances surrounding Bazil’s documents remain unclear at this time.
In a tragic incident on October 4 at approximately 1:30 pm local time, two young boys, aged 6 and 9, were struck by a black Ford SUV near Eagle Pointe on 6700 North Eagle Pointe in the vicinity of West 46th Street and I-465 in Indianapolis. The 9-year-old, Roland Jerome McLain III, succumbed to his injuries at a nearby hospital, while the 6-year-old remains in critical condition.
Both boys were students in the Pike Township School District. The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department responded to the scene, where it was discovered that the SUV fled the scene after the incident.
IMPD officers swiftly arrested the suspect later that day after obtaining descriptions from surveillance footage and a license plate number, leading to the apprehension of Bazil at a car wash in Lawrence, Indiana.
During questioning, Bazil claimed to have accidentally struck something while making a turn, panicked upon realizing he hit a child, and left the scene. He stated that he did not consume alcohol or drugs before the hit-and-run.
At the initial hearing on October 8, Bazil was granted a $50,000 cash bond due to the severity of the charges and uncertainties surrounding immigration detention.
The grandmother of the deceased boy, LaQuisha Moore, expressed deep grief and anger towards Bazil in court, demanding accountability for her grandson’s tragic death.
The case is scheduled for a pretrial conference on December 2 and the jury trial to commence on December 14.
These events shed light on the complexities and repercussions involved in cases where undocumented immigrants face legal consequences in the United States.