A 21-year-old Indian man-- an illegal immigrant in the US-- has been accused of causing a fiery semi-truck crash that killed three people in Southern California.
The man, identified as Jashanpreet Singh, was arrested on charges of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated after smashing his big rig into slow-moving traffic on a San Bernardino County freeway, according to US news reports.
Singh reportedly crossed the southern US border in 2022. He had his first encounter with Border Patrol agents in California's El Centro Sector in March 2022, but was released into the interior of the country by the Biden administration under the "alternatives to detention" policy-- where illegal immigrants were released pending hearings.
The crash was caught on the dashcam of Singh's Freightliner tractor-trailer combination that slammed into the SUV, killing at least three people and injuring several others.
The three people killed in the crash have not been publicly identified yet. Those injured included Singh and a mechanic who was assisting with the tyre change of a vehicle.
Police said Singh never hit the brakes before slamming into the traffic jam, as he was under the influence of drugs. Police said his toxicology tests confirmed the impairment.
"He was eventually transported to the hospital, and he was checked out by the medical staff, and our officers determined he was driving under the influence of drugs," said CHP Officer Rodrigo Jimenez, as quoted by ABC7 News.
The US Department of Homeland Security also confirmed that Singh does not have a lawful immigration status in the US, and according to a Fox News report, the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (USICE) has lodged an immigration detainer against him following his arrest.
The incident is the latest involving illegal immigrant truck drivers in the US. In August, an Indian immigrant named Harjinder Singh was accused of causing a crash in Fort Pierce, Florida, that killed three people.
Harjinder Singh reportedly crossed the southern US border illegally in 2018 and obtained a commercial driver's licence in California.