Life in Prison for Louisiana Smuggler Who Livestreamed a 105-MPH Chase, Then Killed a Grandmother, a 7-Year-Old Girl and 2 Migrants in Ozona, Texas
Rassian Nateray Comer, a 21-year-old from Louisiana, was sentenced to life in federal prison for a human-smuggling run that ended in a crash in Ozona, Texas, killing four people. The dead were a 71-year-old grandmother, her 7-year-old granddaughter and two Mexican nationals riding in his truck. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas announced the sentence in a Sept. 25, 2026, release. It said Comer livestreamed part of the police chase on Facebook Live, with his speedometer reading 105 mph.
A chase down the wrong side of I-10
According to court records cited in the release, Comer was carrying 11 migrants on March 13, 2023, when he fled a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper at more than 100 mph. He drove east in the westbound lanes of Interstate 10, then ran a red light in Ozona and hit a red pickup. The grandmother and granddaughter in the pickup died at the scene. Two of the migrants in Comer’s truck, identified only by their initials, also died, and the other nine were seriously injured. The family’s statement, included in the release, named the victims as Maria “Coke” Tambunga and Emilia Brooke Tambunga.
His fourth smuggling trip
Comer admitted it was his fourth smuggling trip for an organization run by a relative, prosecutors said. He arranged pickup points over WhatsApp and picked up the 11 migrants that day in Sheffield, Texas. Investigators found a Springfield XD9 9mm handgun under the brake pedal. Comer admitted he believed it was stolen. The release does not tie the smuggling organization to any cartel.
Comer pleaded guilty on June 18 to conspiracy to transport illegal aliens resulting in death, 11 counts of transportation resulting in death and possession of a stolen firearm. U.S. District Judge James Wesley Hendrix imposed life on the first 12 counts and 120 months on the gun count, to run concurrently.
“These were innocent lives, stolen in an instant,” U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould said in the release. Homeland Security Investigations, which worked the case, said Comer “showed a callous disregard” for the migrants, the officers chasing him and “the innocent family sharing the road that night.”
KLST, a TV station in San Angelo, reported on the investigation two days after the crash in March 2023:
Sources
- U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Texas: “Alien smuggler who caused death of grandmother, child and two Mexican nationals during smuggling run sentenced to life in federal prison” (Sept. 25, 2026)
- San Angelo LIVE!: “Smuggler Sentenced in San Angelo for Crash that Killed Ozona Girl, Grandmother” (Sept. 25, 2026)
- KCBD: “Driver sentenced to life in prison after smuggling crash that killed four” (Sept. 25, 2026)
- Photos: U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Texas (public domain). Video: KLST-TV/ConchoValleyHomepage.com (March 15, 2023).
Reported Sept. 26, 2026, from the U.S. Attorney’s Office release and local coverage cited above. Details of the crash come from court records as summarized by prosecutors.