Trump admin removes 2000 unqualified truckers from roads—many for English proficiency violations

US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), working alongside state law enforcement agencies, launched the first wave of Operation SafeDRIVE, a multi-state enforcement and education effort aimed at removing unsafe commercial drivers and vehicles from the road. The first phase of the operation took place Jan. 13 to 15 across 26 states and Washington, DC, targeting major freight corridors and high-risk locations. During the three-day effort, officials said enforcement teams conducted 8,215 inspections, placed 704 drivers out of service, including nearly 500 for English proficiency violations, and removed 1,231 vehicles from service. The operation also resulted in 56 arrests, including arrests tied to DUI and illegal presence in the United States.

“Operation SafeDRIVE shows what happens when we work together with our law enforcement partners to pull unqualified drivers and vehicles off American roads,” Duffy said. “We need a whole-of-government approach to ensure the Trump Administration’s strong standards of safety are in place to protect American families and reduce road accidents.”

The federal crackdown comes as crashes involving illegal immigrants who have been issued commercial driver’s licenses continue to garner national headlines. On Jan. 17, a Washington Department of Transportation snowplow was actively applying de-icing material on eastbound I-90 near Kittitas when a semi-truck struck the plow. The impact caused the plow to enter the median and roll over. The snowplow driver was transported to an Ellensburg hospital for evaluation and later released, though WSDOT said the driver was sore the following morning. Washington State Patrol arrested the semi-truck driver at the scene and said the driver was booked for DUI and endangering an emergency worker. Kittitas County jail records show the suspect was being held on $15,000 bail. Federal immigration authorities later confirmed they filed an immigration detainer connected to the case. An ICE spokesperson said ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Seattle lodged a detainer on Jan. 18 with the Kittitas County Jail for Nursultan Rysbekov, describing him as “an illegal alien” arrested after the collision.

In Lacey, Juan Hernandez-Santos, a Mexican national, was accused of causing a six-vehicle pileup involving a school bus while driving a semi without a CDL, insurance, or a valid medical card. DHS later said he had multiple DUIs, a controlled-substance history, two prior removals, and re-entered again, yet local authorities in the sanctuary state declined to honor an ICE detainer and released him. In a separate Washington fatal crash on SR-167 near SR-18, Kamalpreet Singh, an Indian illegal immigrant who sources say was apprehended after crossing near Lukeville, Arizona in late 2023 and released into the U.S., was charged with vehicular homicide after he allegedly failed to brake and crushed a stopped car between two trucks, killing Robert B. Pearson. ICE placed a detainer, but Singh was later released on bond.

Across the country, law enforcement agencies have reported other serious incidents involving large trucks, including collisions tied to impaired driving and cases where drivers were found to be unqualified or unlawfully operating on public roads, trends that federal officials say Operation SafeDRIVE is specifically designed to address. In Southern California, Jashanpreet Singh, an illegal immigrant from India who crossed the border in 2022 and was released pending immigration proceedings, was arrested after authorities said he killed three people in a fiery I-10 collision while intoxicated. In Oregon, Rajinder Kumar, another illegal immigrant from India who entered unlawfully in 2022, was charged after allegedly jackknifing a semi-truck and blocking Highway 20, leading to a crash that killed William Micah Carter and Jennifer Lynn Lower; DHS said he held a California CDL and received Biden-era work authorization. In Florida, Harjinder Singh, who crossed illegally in 2018 and later obtained a Washington-issued CDL that was used to secure a California CDL, was accused of causing a deadly crash in Fort Pierce that killed three people.

In Indiana, ICE lodged detainers on Gurpreet Singh and Jasveer Singh, illegal immigrants from India who held California CDLs and were arrested after officers allegedly found 309 pounds of cocaine hidden in the sleeper berth of their semi during a routine inspection. DHS said one of the two had previously been arrested in California, and ICE lodged a detainer that was not honored under sanctuary policies, after which he was released and later allegedly caught trafficking narcotics.

FMCSA Administrator Derek D. Barrs said the national enforcement initiative was focused on preventing tragedies before they happen. “This operation was about safety,” Barrs said. “When drivers ignore the rules, operate without proper qualifications, or get behind the wheel impaired, they put all of our lives at risk.”