A tractor-trailer driver involved in a deadly crash on Florida’s Turnpike in St. Lucie County has been arrested on vehicular homicide and immigration charges, officials confirmed Saturday.

The driver, identified as Harjinder Singh, was in the US illegally after crossing from Mexico in 2018, according to the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Singh had obtained a commercial driver’s license in California.

The Crash

The collision occurred around 3 p.m. on August 12 near the 171-mile marker at the northern border of St. Lucie County. Singh was driving a 2024 International tractor-trailer northbound when he attempted a U-turn in an “official use only” section of the turnpike.

As Singh crossed the northbound lanes, a 2015 Chrysler Town & Country minivan traveling in the same direction struck the side of the trailer and became wedged beneath it, according to the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP).

The minivan carried three passengers — a 54-year-old man from Miami, a 37-year-old woman from Pompano Beach, and a 30-year-old man from Florida City. Two died at the scene, and the third victim was taken to Lawnwood Hospital in Fort Pierce, where he later died. Authorities have not yet released their names.

Singh and two passengers in his truck, both California men aged 25 and 28, were uninjured.

Legal Action

Singh faces three counts of vehicular homicide. An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer has also been issued, and officials said he will be deported after completing state proceedings.

“This tragedy underscores the importance of accountability on our roads,” said Dave Kerner, executive director of the state’s highway safety department.

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