Catawba soccer player and girlfriend killed in head on collision with DUI illegal immigrant, Juan Alvarado Aguilar. Victims identified as ‘soulmates’ Fletcher Harris and Skylar Provenza.
An illegal immigrant driving under the influence has been arrested following a head-on car collision that led to the deaths of a North Carolina college soccer player and his 19-year-old girlfriend.
Juan Alvarado Aguilar, 37, was allegedly drunk behind the wheel of his Chevy Silverado pick up truck when he crossed the centerline into oncoming traffic on Amity Hill Road in Cleveland, Friday night, January 16th, before colliding into the couple’s vehicle.
The force of the collision led to the couple’s Honda Accord being forced off the road, including the vehicle’s driver being ejected from the vehicle through the front windshield.
Illegal immigrant DUI driver ‘reeked of alcohol,’ and ‘was unsteady on his feet’.
Fletcher Mark Daniel Harris, a 20-year-old Catawba College student driving the Honda, and Statesville resident Skylar Nichole Provenza, 19, were both pronounced dead at the scene, Queen City News reported.
Authorities said the duo were both wearing their seatbelts during the deadly crash.
Aguilar who was driving without a license, and who according to an arrest affidavit, ‘reeked of alcohol,’ and ‘who was unsteady on his feet,’ only suffered minor injuries, the Salisbury Post reported.
Aguilar, who has a pending 2020 DWI charge in Cabarrus County, was arrested Saturday and charged with an ICE detainer after authorities found his Mexican passport according to court records.
Aguilar was charged with two counts of felony death by vehicle and driving while impaired.
Not immediately clear is when Aguilar first entered the U.S and how long he’d been living in North Carolina.
Fletcher Harris and Skylar Provenza ‘soulmates’ remembered
Harris was a junior at Catawba College, where he was double-majoring in environmental sustainability and biology and made the dean’s list every semester while also serving as a goalkeeper for the school’s soccer team, the Catawba Athletic Department wrote in a statement.
The man’s death led to an outpouring of grief.
‘We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of Fletcher Harris,’ Michelle Cadigan, vice president for athletics, said in a statement according to WBTV.
‘This is an unimaginable loss for his family, friends, and our campus community. Fletcher was an exceptional student, a dedicated athlete, and a true friend to so many. His impact extended far beyond the soccer field — he was a valued campus citizen whose character, kindness, and work ethic embodied everything we strived for in our student-athletes.’
Soccer coach Alex Morais added Harris was ‘profoundly loved,’ according to the Salisbury Post.
‘The response of love and support has been overwhelming and reflects the profound impact this incredible young man had on so many lives,’ Harris said in a statement.
Harris met Provenza at a summer job waiting tables. In Provenza’s obituary, her family said it was ‘evident they were soulmates.’ She’s survived by her parents and her brother and sister.
Aguilar remains held at the Rowan County Detention Center on a $5 million bond.
He is due back in court on March 2.
