Omaha, Nebraska (RI) — The Honduran man convicted of crashing into and killing an Iowa woman in Omaha in 2016 has been sentenced to over two decades in prison.
Douglas County District Court Judge James Masteller sentenced 29-year-old Eswin Mejia to 20 to 22 years in prison Monday. The sentencing comes two months after Mejia pleaded no contest to, and was found guilty of, motor vehicle homicide, a charge stemming from when Mejia was driving under the influence and crashed into and killed 21-year-old Sarah Root in South Omaha. The car crash occurred when Mejia rear-ended Root’s car near 33rd and L Streets on January 31st, 2016.
Mejia, a Honduran native who was living in the United States illegally at the time of the fatal crash, fled the United States after posting 10% of a $50,000 bail. It wasn’t until February 27th of last year that Honduran National Police said they had arrested Mejia, who was then extradited back to the U.S. in March 2025.
Root, a Council Bluffs native, had recently graduated from Bellevue University with a 4.0 grade point average when she was killed.
KIWA Staff Photo
