ICE arrested Indian truck drivers in California’s Operation Highway Sentinel following deadly crashes tied to state-issued CDLs (Department of Homeland Security)
US Customs and Border Protection says border patrol agents arrested 30 Indian nationals living in the US illegally for driving semitrucks with commercial driver’s licenses during recent operations in California.
CBP agents in the El Centro Sector stopped a total of 49 undocumented immigrants holding commercial driver’s licenses during vehicle checks at immigration points and joint ops with other agencies. Between November 23 and December 12, agents caught 42 people driving semitrucks on highways or passing through checkpoints.
Of the group arrested, 30 were Indian nationals. The rest came from El Salvador, China, Eritrea, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Russia, Somalia, Turkey, and Ukraine.
CBP says 31 of the licenses came from California. Others were issued by states like Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Washington.
Some arrests happened during Operation Highway Sentinel, a two-day joint operation on December 10 and 11 in Ontario and Fontana, California. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations led the operation.
Operation Highway Sentinel led to the arrest of 45 undocumented people with commercial driver’s licenses. On the first day, agents picked up one Indian national and one Tajik national. The second day, they detained four Indian nationals and one Uzbek national.
CBP said the operation focused on commercial trucking companies in California after several deadly highway crashes involving undocumented semitruck drivers. The idea was to enforce immigration laws, boost road safety, and make sure commercial trucking follows the rules.
El Centro Sector Acting Chief Patrol Agent Joseph Remenar said, “The success of this operation highlights the ongoing dangers posed by the unmitigated border crisis we experienced prior to 2025. The individuals arrested should never have been operating these semitrucks, and the states issuing them commercial driver’s licenses are directly responsible for the fatal accidents we have tragically witnessed recently. Together, with our allied partners in Homeland Security Investigations and other agencies, El Centro Sector will continue to ensure that the safety of the American public is at the forefront of our efforts.”
US officials have pointed to several recent cases of Indian nationals driving commercial trucks while in the country illegally.
In one case, Rajinder Kumar, 32, faced charges of criminally negligent homicide and reckless endangerment after a crash that killed two people. In other cases, ICE issued arrest detainers against Indian nationals accused of causing deadly or serious highway accidents in Florida and California.
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