Ruby Garcia, 25, of Grand Rapids, was found dead on US-131 on the evening of March 22. She had been shot multiple times by her boyfriend, 25-year-old Brandon Ortiz-Vite.
Ortiz-Vite, who has an extensive criminal record in West Michigan dating back to 2017, was deported under the Trump Administration in 2020 but later made his way back across the border without being vetted by immigration officials.
“Brandon Ortiz-Vite, a 25-year-old citizen of Mexico, was arrested by Enforcement and Removal sOperations (ERO) Detroit on Aug. 31, 2020, and served a notice to appear. He was ordered removed by an immigration judge with the Justice Department’s Executive Office of Immigration Review Sept. 24, 2020, and was removed to Mexico Sept. 29, 2020.
“At an unknown date and location Ortiz-Vite reentered the United States without inspection by an immigration official,” ICE said in a statement.
He was arraigned Tuesday on charges of felony murder, carjacking, felony firearm, illegally carrying a concealed weapon, operating while intoxicated and driving on a suspended or revoked license.
Ruby Garcia is trending! Keep it up!
She’s a 25-year old woman who was m*rdered by a criminal illegal alien. Her body was found dumped on the side of a highway. Her Governor @GovWhitmer hasn’t said a word about her.
Justice for Ruby! https://t.co/TpSlSOuLdV pic.twitter.com/JT4pfEfTHF
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) March 26, 2024
Inspection of Garcia’s phone suggested she and Ortiz-Vite were dating, and had agreed to meet at Garcia’s residence about an hour before her murder.
Ortiz-Vite was arrested on Sunday and confessed to shooting Garcia multiple times from the passenger seat of her vehicle after an argument. Ortiz-Vite then got out of the car, walked around to the driver’s side, and shot her an additional time before removing her from the car.
He then took the car, which was found abandoned in the South Haven area Saturday. Bullet holes through the window and the car’s bloody interior confirmed it as the scene of the crime.
Ortiz-Vite was arrested at an Allegan County church after calling 911 to turn himself in. He was found inside the church with blood on his clothes, possessing a 9mm Taurus pistol. He told the police he had purchased the weapon illegally.
“She will be remembered as being full of life and laughter, those who were around her would know she was silly and made everyone laugh… Her life was taken too soon. She deserved to live life, travel the world, have kids and follow her dreams,” The victim’s sister, Mavi Garcia, told a local news outlet.
Ruby Garcia’s name is trending on X after joining the long list of victims killed by unvetted illegal immigrants, thanks to dangerously lax U.S. border policies.