Truck driver facing deportation after crash kills 3 on Florida Turnpike
The deadly wreck took place on Tuesday, Aug. 12, in St. Lucie County, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles said in a news release.
The Florida Highway Patrol responded to the two-vehicle crash along Florida's Turnpike, according to the release. The two-vehicle crash involved a minivan and a commercial semi-truck and trailer, officials said.
A preliminary investigation revealed the driver of the commercial semi-truck recklessly and "without regard for the safety of others," attempted to make a U-Turn in an unauthorized location, the agency wrote, leading to the death of all three people in the minivan.
USA TODAY reached out to state troopers for more information on Tuesday, Aug. 19, but has not received a response.
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Truck driver facing deportation after fatal Florida Turnpike crash
According to the agency, state troopers obtained a criminal arrest warrant for the driver, Harjinder Singh, on three felony counts of vehicular homicide.
It was not immediately known whether Singh had obtained an attorney for the criminal charges he faces.
Truck driver involved in fatal crash 'crossed Mexico border in 2018'
During the criminal investigation, and with the assistance of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the agency said troopers learned Singh entered the US illegally, "having crossed the Mexico border in 2018."
Singh then obtained a commercial driver's license in California, the release continues.
Under the federal authority delegated by ICE to troopers, the state police issued an ICE detainer, the agency said.
Dave Kerner, the agency's executive director, released a statement following Singh's arrest, calling the crime while operating a commercial tractor-trailer "both shocking and criminal."
"He will no longer be able to damage and destroy the lives of Floridians and visitors," Kerner said. "At the conclusion of his state charges, he will be deported."
In a statement from the office of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin, she blamed the incident on California Gov. Gavin Newsom and his state's Department of Motor Vehicles for issuing Singh a license.
'This state of governance is asinine,' the statement reads. 'How many more innocent people must die before Gavin Newsom stops playing games with the safety of the American public? We pray for the victims and their families."
California governor: Singh obtained work permit under Trump in 2020
But according to a post from Newsom's office on X, Singh, an Indian national, obtained a work permit in 2020, during Donald Trump's first term as president.
"The federal government (YOU) already confirmed that this guy meets federal and state immigration requirements -- YOU issued him a work permit," Newsome said in the post directed to President Trump.
Hey, Commander Cosplay: the federal government (YOU) already confirmed that this guy meets federal and state immigration requirements -- YOU issued him a work permit (EAD). Oops.As usual, you are either lying or clueless. https://t.co/3zYZFILJKS pic.twitter.com/V0fzG8VR4G
McLaughlin later disputed the allegation, stating that Singh is in the United States illegally and that his work authorization was rejected under the Trump Administration on Sept. 14, 2020.
"It was later approved under the Biden Administration (on) June 9, 2021," McLaughlin wrote in a post on X. "The state of California issues Commercial Drivers Licenses. There is no national CDL."
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.
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