Team Trump Flags "Disturbing Pattern" After "Illegal" Indian Trucker Kills 3

The White House has slammed the state of California for issuing a commercial vehicle licence to a "criminal illegal alien", after an undocumented Indian-origin truck driver, Jashanpreet Singh, caused a deadly eight-vehicle crash in Ontario, killing three people. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also highlighted what she called a "disturbing pattern" of commercial driver's licenses (CDLs) being issued to illegal immigrants in the United States. 

What The White House Said

"I can confirm that California gave this individual a licence, and it is something that the Department of Transportation has already looked into... He killed three people, and he first entered the United States in 2022 through the southern border, and he was released into our country by the previous administration," Leavitt said, addressing a press conference.

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"So now ICE (United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement) has lodged a separate detainer for this individual, and these tragedies are following a disturbing pattern of these criminal illegal aliens being issued commercial vehicle licences. And so, yes, the Department of Transportation is absolutely cracking down on that,' she added. 

Singh, a 21-year-old semi-truck driver, is accused of being under the influence of drugs and causing a fiery crash that killed three people on a Southern California freeway. He was in America illegally, US Homeland Security officials said on Thursday.

The White House Press Secretary said that the Transportation Department has started cracking down on noncitizens getting commercial driver's licences after a similar incident last month. 

"Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who's doing a phenomenal job, has spoken on this many times in the crackdown that the Department of Transportation is taking on these licenses that are wrongfully being issued to people who clearly do not deserve to hold these positions," she said. 

"For this case in California, on October 22, ICE lodged an immigration detainer for this individual following his arrest by local authorities in California on charges, as you know, of manslaughter while intoxicated and driving under the influence," Leavitt added. 

ALSO READ: "Unauthorised Alien": Indian-Origin Truck Driver Behind US Crash Denied Bail

About Jashanpreet Singh

Singh was arrested and jailed after Tuesday's crash in Ontario, California, that also left four people injured. He faces three counts of vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and driving under the influence, causing injury.

Singh is scheduled for arraignment on Friday. The district attorney's office said he does not yet have a lawyer.

The Yuba City resident in California is originally from Punjab. He entered the US illegally in 2022 across the southern border, Homeland Security said Thursday in a post on X.

Dashcam video from the tractor-trailer that Singh was driving showed the truck slamming into what appears to be a small, white SUV in the freeway's centre lane. It continued forward, ramming into several other vehicles, including another truck. It then crossed over two lanes before crashing into an already-disabled truck on the freeway's right shoulder.

ALSO READ: "He's Only 28": Family Of Indian-Origin Truck Driver Behind US Crash Call For Light Penalty

Team Trump's Crackdown on Illegal Immigrants

That revelation prompted Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy to restate earlier concerns about who should be able to obtain commercial driver's licences. Duffy and President Donald Trump have been pressing the issue and criticising California ever since a deadly Florida crash in August was caused by an immigrant truck driver, who, according to the Trump administration, was in the country illegally.

The Transportation Department significantly restricted when noncitizens can get commercial driver's licences last month. Duffy said this week's crash wouldn't have happened if Newsom had followed these new rules.

"These people deserve justice. There will be consequences," he said in a statement.

Newsom's office responded that the federal government approved Singh's federal employment authorisation multiple times, and this allowed him to obtain a commercial driver's license in accordance with federal law.