An illegal alien is now accused of killing a senior adviser to Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) in a fatal hit-and-run car crash in Washoe County, Nevada.
Elmer Rueda-Linares, an 18-year-old illegal alien, has been arrested by the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office and charged with the death of 38-year-old Kurt Englehart — a father and a state senior adviser to Cortez Masto.
On April 6, police allege that Rueda-Linares was driving when he crashed into Englehart and then fled the scene. When police arrived, Rueda-Linares was nowhere to be found, while Englehart was found dead inside his vehicle.
Rueda-Linares was initially charged with felony hit-and-run, but that charge has been downgraded to a single charge of failing to stop at the scene of an accident.
On Wednesday, the Reno Gazette-Journal revealed that Reuda-Linares is an illegal alien who recently arrived at the United States-Mexico border and was released into the nation’s interior:
On April 8, federal officers placed an immigration detainer — or “ICE hold”— on Rueda-Linares, who is being held at Washoe County Jail, the Department of Homeland Security told the RGJ in a statement Tuesday.
[Emphasis added]…
“Rueda entered the United States March 12, 2021, at or near the Rio Grande City, Texas, Port of Entry without inspection by an immigration official,” DHS said. “United States Customs and Border Protection arrested him, and he was later released on his own recognizance June 22, 2021.” [Emphasis added]
The same month that Rueda-Linares crossed the southern border, Cortez Masto told MSNBC that “There’s no open borders” and suggesting so is “misinformation.”
CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO, March 2021: "there's no open borders."
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) September 22, 2022
FACT: There have been 4.4 million illegal crossings since Biden took office, including 850,000 "gotaways" who have crossed the border and escaped into the U.S. pic.twitter.com/9j9OhiY0pt
In an obituary, Englehart is described as a “skilled political strategist” who not only worked for Cortez Masto but also former President Barack Obama’s 2012 presidential campaign.
“Kurt loved reading, history, philosophy, dystopian worlds, rural America, and playing League of Legends and World of Warcraft, where he forged many important friendships,” Englehart’s obituary reads.
Rueda-Linares will appear in court this week and remains in Washoe County Jail on a $100,000 bail.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at
