The driver who hit and killed a Maine brewery co-owner in New Gloucester last weekend has been detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement,
Mukendi Mbiya, 49, of Lewiston entered the United States on a B-2 tourist visa on Dec. 23, 2018, but allegedly failed to leave before his visa expired on June 22, 2019, according to ICE.
Mbiya was driving a 2016 Ford Fusion on Lewiston Road in New Gloucester about 8:40 p.m. on Aug. 16 when he hit 64-year-old Stacy Strattard of Gray as she crossed the road, the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office has said.
Strattard was a co-owner of Birchwood Brewing in Gray.
“Stacy had a gift for making everyone feel welcome. If you ever came into the brewery chances are you were greeted by her warm smile and kind spirit. She truly loved what she did and loved the community that grew around her. Birchwood will never be the same without her, but we will keep her spirit alive in everything we do here,” the brewery said in a statement earlier this week.
ICE arrested Mbiya on Monday.
That comes after ICE detained a driver involved in another fatal pedestrian crash in Lewiston.
Elizabeth Camacho of Cambridge, Massachusetts, was walking along Park Street, near Kennedy Park, about 12:55 p.m. on Aug. 15 when a 2013 Buick Verano driven by 31-year-old Lionel Francisco left the road, jumped a curb and hit her, according to the Lewiston Police Department.
Camacho was taken to Central Maine Medical Center and then airlifted to Maine Medical Center in Portland, where she succumbed to her injuries.
Francisco was driving with a learner’s permit and cooperating with investigators.
Francisco entered the U.S. on a B-2 tourist visa on Jan. 31, but allegedly failed to leave before his mandated departure date of July 30, according to ICE.
He was detained the same day of the crash. ICE also detained Francisco’s passenger, 34-year-old Wilson Pedro of Westbrook, for an immigration violation, Maine Public reported.
