Undocumented Truck Driver Arrested for Vehicular Homicide in St. Lucie County

By Jay Waagmeester, The Florida Phoenix

Florida state troopers have charged a truck driver with three counts of vehicular manslaughter following a crash in St. Lucie County last week.

The truck driver, Harjinder Singh, entered the United States illegally in 2018, according to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.

Singh holds a California commercial driver’s license, the department said.

The three people inside a minivan died after crashing into a semi truck driven by Singh, who “recklessly, and without regard for the safety of others, attempted to execute a U-Turn utilizing an unauthorized location,” the department said in a news release.

The crash occurred on the Florida Turnpike near Fort Pierce.

Troopers, citing a 287(g) agreement allowing them to act for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, issued a detainer for Singh.

On Fox & Friends, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said the crash “shows how dangerous the open-border policies under Obama and Biden have been that have continued to wreak havoc on communities across the country.”

Singh, Florida officials allege, crossed the U.S.-Mexico border in 2018, during President Donald Trump’s first term in the White House.

“The actions taken by the Defendant while operating a commercial tractor-trailer are both shocking and criminal,” FLHSMV Executive Director Dave Kerner said in a news release. “Three people lost their lives as a result of his recklessness, and countless friends and family members will experience the pain of their loss forever.”

A count of vehicular homicide in Florida can bring a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.

“He will no longer be able to damage and destroy the lives of Floridians and visitors. At the conclusion of his state charges, he will be deported,” Kerner said.

Newsweek reported that Singh is an Indian national and that the three people who died were a 37-year-old from Pompano Beach, 54-year-old from Miami, and the van driver, a 30-year-old from Florida City. The driver died at a hospital and the two others died at the scene.

Singh was arrested in California by U.S. Marshals on Saturday, Newsweek also reported.