A newlywed couple’s lives were cut short in Oregon after a semi-truck driven by an Indian national — who federal authorities say was in the United States illegally — jackknifed across a highway and caused a fatal collision.
Rajinder Kumar, 32, was arrested after the 24 November crash on US Highway 20 near Bend, where his semi-truck and trailer folded across both lanes. A Subaru Outback slammed into the obstruction, killing driver William Micah Carter and his wife, Jennifer Lynn Lower.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed this week that Kumar had entered the US illegally in 2022 near Lukeville, Arizona, and was released into the country by the Biden administration. He was later granted work authorisation in 2023 and issued a commercial driver’s licence in California.
Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said Kumar was “a criminal illegal alien from India” who had been able to obtain a licence from “Gavin Newsom’s Department of Motor Vehicles”. She questioned how many “senseless tragedies” would occur before “sanctuary politicians stop allowing illegal aliens to dangerously operate semi-trucks on America’s roads”.
“Our prayers are with William and Jennifer’s families,” McLaughlin added, noting that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) would continue efforts to remove unauthorised truck drivers from US highways.
Kumar is being held in the Deschutes County Jail facing charges of criminally negligent homicide and reckless endangerment. DHS said ICE has lodged an arrest detainer and will seek custody should Oregon — a sanctuary state — release him.
Federal officials say the case is the latest in a series of fatal or serious crashes involving illegal migrants who were previously released into the country.
In August, ICE lodged a detainer for Harjinder Singh after he was charged with three counts of vehicular homicide in Florida. That same month, the agency arrested Partap Singh in California over a multi-vehicle crash that left a five-year-old child with life-altering injuries. In October, another Indian national, Jashanpreet Singh, was accused of killing three people in California while driving an 18-wheeler under the influence.
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