Man accused of causing crash that killed 4 in Canadian County charged with second-degree murder

A man accused of causing a crash that killed four young adults in Canadian County has been charged with several felonies, including four counts of second-degree murder.WATCH: OHP officials give update on deadly wrong-way crash on I-40 in OklahomaMichael Salomon Rosario-Cruz, 27, is accused of driving the wrong way down Interstate 40 before striking a vehicle head-on near Czech Hall Road on May 22. Court documents say Rosario-Cruz was driving his F-150 truck under the influence when the crash, which caused the other vehicle to catch fire, occurred. Rosario-Cruz's truck struck another vehicle with four people inside. Kiercey Hickson, Quincy Jones, Brad Palmer and Haliegh Salazar were killed in the crash. All four were between 18 and 20 years old.>> Video Below: El Reno community grieves four killed in wrong-way crash on I-40Investigators found an opened can of beer in Rosario-Cruz's truck, according to court documents. He was charged in Canadian County on Thursday with four counts of second-degree murder, one count of carrying a firearm while under the influence and one count of transporting an opened container of an intoxicating beverage. Who is Rosario-Cruz?Rosario-Cruz lives in Tennessee but was in Oklahoma for work, according to the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. Oklahoma Department of Public Safety Commissioner Tim Tipton said the state is working with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials on the case after claiming the suspect did not have legal immigration status in the U.S. Tipton said the suspect was granted Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status in 2015 and was given a work authorization permit.>> Video Below: Advocates say focus on immigration status overshadows victims in fatal Oklahoma crashDACA allows certain undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children to temporarily avoid deportation, though it does not provide citizenship.Tipton added that the suspect did not have a prior criminal record. Tipton said the agency's goal is that he will never be free in the U.S. again."This was murder. This was an intentional act," Tipton said. "Every year, we lose about 200 people in Oklahoma to impaired driving. Thousands more are injured from impaired driving, and it's something we take serious."Fernando Baquera Ochoa, a DACA recipient and community advocate, said some of the statements made during the press conference require more context. "Not all DACA recipients came into the country illegally. There is a work authorization connected with DACA, and deferred action protects us from deportation," Ochoa said. "In the same press conference, he mentions there's about 200 individuals who die in Oklahoma per year due to impaired drivers. In this unfortunate case, four individuals are no longer here. Out of the other 196, how many of them were by undocumented people? How many of those people were U.S. citizens?" >> Video Below: OHP officials call Oklahoma wrong-way crash that killed four 'murder'He expressed concern that the focus on the driver's immigration status detracts from the families mourning their loved ones. "It's not about me. It's not about my status. It's about these families that are being affected," Ochoa said. "The spotlight has become his legal status and not justice for these families and justice for these victims, which is terrible."Who were the victims?Those killed in the crash included three El Reno High School graduates, as well as a Stillwater woman. Palmer and Jones graduated from El Reno High School just days before the crash, Salazar graduated from El Reno in 2025. Hickson graduated from Epic Charter Schools in 2024, and she was attending cosmetology school, according to her obituary. Hickson, 20, Jones, 19, Salazar, 18, and Palmer, 18, were described as a close group of friends with bright futures ahead of them.>> Video Below: Driver accused of killing 4 is booked into jail on complaints of second-degree murder, DUI and moreThe El Reno Public Schools released a statement on social media expressing grief over the loss, saying their "hearts are heavy as they grieve alongside families, friends, classmates, and all who knew them."Counseling staff members have been made available at the school to support the community.The group had been heading to Bricktown to hang out and ride scooters, according to officials.Salazar's mother, who spoke with KOCO, described her daughter as a “girly girl” who had just transitioned into adulthood. “She liked her perfume, her eyelashes, and I could walk through the house and find little pieces of eyelashes everywhere,” Shirley Salazar said. >> Video Below: Mother shares memories of daughter killed in Canadian County wrong-way crashShe said that her daughter wanted to be an ultrasound technician or work in radiology. “I talked to her yesterday morning — around 2:30. It was her only day off for the week. She was pulling doubles," her mother said. She said she is comforted knowing that the friend group's last moments were spent together. “They didn’t go alone. They were friends, and I think that’s what’s going to pull us through,” she said. >> Video Below: Former teacher leads effort to help families after Canadian County crash that killed 4