Harjinder Singh, a 28-year-old illegal alien from India who was arrested on Aug. 16, 2025, allegedly attempted to make an unauthorized U-turn in Ft. Pierce, Florida, on Tuesday, resulting in a crash that killed three people. (U.S. Marshals Service )
In addition, he also got a commercial driver’s license in July 2023 in the state of Washington, which is against the law there, according to the Department of Transportation.
The driver allegedly made a U-turn in an area on the Florida Turnpike where such a turn was prohibited, causing his truck to crash with a minivan, killing three people. In addition, he failed an English proficiency assessment and a road sign test done by federal investigators.
"During [Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's] interview with the driver, investigators administered an English Language Proficiency (ELP) assessment in accordance with FMCSA guidance," DOT said in a statement. "The driver failed the assessment, providing correct responses to just 2 of 12 verbal questions and only accurately identifying 1 of 4 highway traffic signs."
The California Department of Motor Vehicles has not responded to requests for comment on the issuance of the license. However, California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s press office got into an exchange on X.com with DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin about the details of how he got a work permit.
ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT TRUCKER ACCUSED OF KILLING THREE PEOPLE FAILED ENGLISH, ROAD SIGN TESTS: DOT
Tractor trailers at the entrance of the Port of Baltimore in Baltimore, Maryland, US, on Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024. (Nathan Howard)
Lora Ries, director of the Border Security and Immigration Center at The Heritage Foundation, told Fox News Digital on Wednesday about how Singh’s case could happen in the first place.
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"Just as states issue driver’s licenses, they also issue commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs). States are not supposed to issue CDLs to a person unless they are a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident (green card holder). There seems to be a loophole for a state to issue a CDL to someone who is merely authorized to work in the U.S.," Ries explained in a statement.
"Note that the Trump (45) administration denied Harjinder Singh’s application for work authorization, but the Biden administration later granted his request. That could be enough to exploit this CDL loophole in a willing state," the expert continued.
Fox News Digital's Peter D'Abrosca contributed to this report.
Cameron Arcand is a politics writer at Fox News Digital in Washington D.C. Story tips can be sent to Cameron.Arcand@Fox.com and on Twitter: @cameron_arcand
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/blue-state-investigates-how-illegal-immigrant-trucker-got-license-before-deadly-florida-crash