Killer migrant trucker was given driver’s license even though he barely knew English or how to drive

An Indian immigrant who killed three people with an illegal U-turn spoke poor English and shouldn’t have been allowed to operate the semi-trailer he was driving.

Harjinder Singh crossed two lanes of traffic and ignored a no U-turn sign on the Florida Turnpike near Fort Pierce on August 12.

A minivan had no time to stop and crashed into the side of the rig as it turned left across the lanes and was dragged under the White Hawk Carriers truck.

Singh, who is charged with vehicular homicide, was interviewed by Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration investigators looking into the crash.

They gave him an English Language Proficiency assessment, which also tested his ability to read and understand road signs, and he badly failed.

Singh got just two of 12 verbal questions correct and only accurately identified one of four highway traffic signs, according to the investigation’s preliminary findings.

The report revealed Singh was issued a Commercial Driver’s License by Washington state on July 15, 2023.

Singh was in the US as an asylum seeker and was awaiting his hearing in an immigration court to determine if he would be granted refugee status.

Harjinder Singh, pictured, right, killed three people after performing an illegal U-turn on Florida’s Turnpike near Fort Pierce on August 12

Some states allow asylum seekers with pending decisions, like Singh, to get a CDL if they have a work permit and social security number.

The Department of Homeland Security said Singh was denied a work permit in September 2020, then granted one in June 2021.

However, Washington is not one of those states, and instead requires applicants to be US citizens or permanent residents.

How he was issued with a CDL anyway is unclear, as is how he passed the rigorous testing and training with such poor English skills.

Singh was also issued a non-domiciled CDL – a license granted to out-of-state drivers to operate in that state – by California on July 23, 2024.

California is one of several states that issue CDLs to asylum seekers before their claims are decided in court.

The FMCSA is investigating to determine if correct procedures were followed in issuing Singh with one.

The California Department of Motor Vehicles insisted that it followed all state and federal laws in reviewing and granting Singh his CDL.

‘The federal government confirmed Mr Singh’s legal presence in the US,’ it said in a statement.

‘Mr Singh’s commercial driver’s license is a federal REAL ID, which he was entitled to receive given the federal government’s confirmation of his legal status.’

Singh was earmarked for fast-track deportation after being caught crossing into California in 2018 – only to avoid being flown home to India after expressing ‘fear’ and claiming asylum

The FMCSA preliminary findings also highlighted an alleged regulatory failure in New Mexico, after Singh was pulled over for speeding on July 3 this year.

The police who pulled him over were supposed to assess his English proficiency during the traffic stop, and give him the same ELP as the FMCSA investigators did after his arrest.

‘If the inspector’s initial contact with the driver indicates that the driver may not understand the inspector’s initial instructions, the inspector should conduct an ELP assessment,’ the FMCSA said in its guidance.

However, New Mexico had not yet begun enforcing ELP despite the requirement being in effect since June 25, and there was no evidence Singh was given one, the findings stated.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy claimed the three motorists would still be alive if Washington and New Mexico followed the rules.

‘This crash was a preventable tragedy directly caused by reckless decisions and compounded by despicable failures,’ he said.

‘Non-enforcement and radical immigration policies have turned the trucking industry into a lawless frontier, resulting in unqualified foreign drivers improperly acquiring licenses to operate 40-ton vehicles.

‘We will use every tool at our disposal to hold these states and bad actors accountable.’

The FMCSA will continue investigating the crash, including how Singh acquired his Washington CDL despite his poor English and lack of permanent residency.

All three occupants of this black minivan died after slamming into Singh’s trailer. The driver was a 30 year-old man, while the passengers were a 37 year-old woman and 54 year-old man. They have yet to be identified

Numerous truckers claimed on social media that immigrant drivers, particularly from India, were able to get CDLs in various part of the US and Canada through organized rings that bribe officials or coach would-be drivers just enough to pass tests.

Others who knew the turnpike well speculated he made the illegal U-turn because he missed his exit and didn’t want to drive 45 miles to the next legal turnaround, or pay a toll to get off at an exit and turn there.

Singh crossed into California from Mexico in September 2018 and was detained by Border Control the same day.

He was earmarked for a fast-track deportation back to India, but managed to swerve it by claiming he had a ‘fear’ of returning to his home nation.

Migrants can claim asylum under US law if returning home would result in ‘persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution’ due to race, membership in a particular social group, political opinion, religion, or national origin, among others.

Immigration officials accepted his claims, which gave him a case for asylum in the US under American immigration law that would be tested in court.

Singh was freed on a $5,000 immigration bond in January 2019 while his case was pending, as is standard practice for asylum seekers.

He was given a notice to appear before an immigration judge at a later date, but the huge backlog of asylum claims meant he never saw a courtroom.

Video from inside his enormous semi-truck shows the moment he casually began performing a U-turn on a highway, failing to consider other cars on the road traveling at speed

During his time on ‘parole’, as release into the US with a pending asylum claim is known, he got his work permits and later his CDL – both of which are available to immigrants with legitimate pending claims but not undocumented ones.

Sickening footage from the cab of the truck showed a black minivan traveling at speed slam into the trailer as Singh began to turn.

All three occupants of the van were killed. Its driver – a 30-year-old man from Florida City – died after being flown to hospital by helicopter.

The passengers who also died were a 37-year-old woman from Pompano Beach and a 54-year-old man from Miami. None of their identities have been released so far.

Singh faces three counts of vehicular homicide, each of which carries a jail sentence of up to 15 years – followed by automatic deportation as a felon.

DHS issued a detainer on him on Saturday after the crash, applying to have him deported.

‘After careful consideration of all factors and available records, Singh is considered a significant threat to public safety and is an exceptional circumstance warranting enforcement action due to the serious nature of his criminal history,’ it said.

Video from inside his enormous semi-truck shows the moment he casually began performing a U-turn on a highway, failing to consider other cars on the road traveling at speed.

As he took up the entire highway, a minivan crashed directly into the side of the truck, unable to break quick enough to prevent the tragedy.

As he took up the entire highway, a minivan crashed directly into the side of the truck, unable to break quick enough to prevent the tragedy

The area in which Singh was attempting to turn around was an ‘official use only’ pass, as was clearly stated on a no U-urn sign in front of it.

In the video, Singh remained calm as it became apparent the minivan had been completely demolished, with debris strewn across the highway.

He peered out the driver’s side window immediately after the impact, before wordlessly putting the truck in park and turning off his engine.

Moments later, Singh was on camera watching on as emergency services crews worked to free the mangled car from underneath the truck.

He stood with his arms slack by his side just a few steps away from rescue crews, peering at the camera as it panned to catch the devastation of the crash.