A half-naked California trucker, who couldn’t speak or understand English, was recently confronted by Arkansas police and tested on his ability to read basic traffic signs.
The video footage is revealing a disturbing pattern on the roads — semi-truck drivers who cannot speak English or read basic traffic signs are putting people at risk.
After a series of fatal crashes involving illegal immigrants driving 18-wheelers, the Trump administration has tightened the CDL requirements for long-haul truck drivers.
U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy issued new emergency rules in September, making it harder for non-U.S. citizens to obtain a commercial driver’s license.
In the seven-minute video posted online, an Arkansas state trooper walks up to the semi-truck and asks the driver “Why are you parked here?” The driver, found sleeping in his cab with his pants off, could not understand basic English questions.
The Arkansas trooper pulled him off the road and removed him from service after failing a roadside English proficiency test that involved explaining what several signs mean.
During the exchange, the trooper asks several questions, including “Do you understand English? Is there anybody else in the truck? Where is your log book at?”
He also tells him to “put you some clothes on … pants, put your pants on.”
When he asks the driver about the company he works for, he responds, “California.”
The officer then says, “Your company is called California? Yeah, you don’t understand me. All right.”
Later, he asks the trucker to read several signs and asks, “What does this sign mean?”
The trooper explains to an off-camera passenger that semi-truck drivers have to get three of the four signs correct. They also have to be able to understand and answer some basic questions.
“We ask them general, everyday questions, what they’re hauling, where they’re taking it, company questions, if anybody else is in the truck with them,” the trooper says. “He kept saying California. He’s fixing to be put out of service. He got the no parking sign right but the rest of them he had no clue.”
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy also shared a shorter version of the video to social media, adding his two cents: “How in the hell did someone like that get a commercial driver’s license? The only way non-English speakers can get behind the wheel of a big rig is if states refuse to enforce our laws!”
California, in particular, has come under fire for a series of fatal crashes involving illegal alien semi-truck drivers who obtained their CDL in the state. It’s also the worst offender, with up to 25% of CDLs improperly issued.
Duffy gave the Golden State 30 days to comply with the federal CDL rules changes after a notice of noncompliance was sent, but California officials ignored them, specifically regarding English Language Proficiency standards and the proper issuance of non-domiciled CDLs.
The DOT responded by withholding over $40 million in federal funding, with threats of more severe penalties, including potentially decertifying the state’s entire CDL program.
Duffy also appeared on Fox News’ “The Will Cain Show” last week, and said it’s time to hold trucking companies and shippers that load up big rigs accountable.
“A company can’t hire someone and then do so knowing that they can’t speak English,” Duffy said. “That’s a huge problem. They should go through their own instruction course to make sure they have a well-qualified driver.”
Duffy also said that there is a lot of interaction between the company shipping the goods and the trucker, so the shippers who load up these big rigs and send them across the country should know if a driver is proficient in English.
The Trump administration has multiple agencies on the lookout for illegal immigrant truck drivers. There have been targeted enforcement efforts in Oklahoma, Indiana and other states.
“The Trump Administration is taking a whole-of-government approach to removing these public safety threats,” the U.S. Department of Homeland Security shared on X. “@Sec_Noem and @SecDuffy have partnered to hold sanctuary politicians accountable and make America’s roads safe again.”
Illegal aliens who do not speak our language or understand our laws have no business operating 18-wheelers on America’s highways.
The Trump Administration is taking a whole-of-government approach to removing these public safety threats. @Sec_Noem and @SecDuffy have partnered to… pic.twitter.com/qDWNjHDOpx
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) October 30, 2025
Last week, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced the arrests of more than 140 illegal alien truck drivers — many with significant criminal histories — in coordination with Indiana State Police. Most received CDLs from sanctuary states like California, Illinois and New York.
ICE shared several updates on social media about its highway enforcement efforts, with Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons saying it’s a national security issue because terrorists will stop at nothing to harm the United States.
What happens in one state spills into others. Case in point:
We arrested more than 140 illegal alien truck drivers — many with significant criminal histories — in coordination with Indiana law enforcement.
Most received CDLs from sanctuary states like California, Illinois and… pic.twitter.com/VWNkkNrWcP
— U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (@ICEgov) October 31, 2025
“What happens in one state like the issuance of a CDL to an illegal alien, spills over to other state,” Lyons said during a press conference. “The problem is we don’t know what they are carrying across state lines in an 18-wheeler.”
In another viral video, a truck driver named Tim O’Friel recently gained attention for pulling over another trucker who was driving the wrong way on an interstate in Indiana.
Footage from O’Friel’s dash cam shows the semi coming toward him. It occurred on Oct. 11 on Interstate 90 in Indiana, near a toll booth.
O’Friel watched the semi-truck drive the wrong way through the toll booth and blocked him to see “what the heck he was doing.”
On the video, O’Friel can be heard saying, “You have got to be f*cking kidding me.”
He pulls up to the semi and confronts the driver, who responds in broken English, and tells him to turn his hazard lights on and turn around: “You are going the wrong way down the freeway. You are committing a felony right now.”
Days following that incident, Indiana also reported a fatal highway crash involving an illegal alien from Serbia who didn’t have a valid commercial driver’s license.
Borko Stankovic of Lyons, Ill., was driving a semi-truck with a trailer and killed a 54-year-old man during a fiery car crash in northwest Indiana, resulting in felony charges for reckless homicide. Officials said Stankovic possessed a suspended Illinois CDL, which belonged to a family member, but didn’t have a valid CDL himself
ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan also spoke at last week’s press conference, adding the State of Indiana understands the risk of having semi-trucks on the highway with people who don’t know how to drive them.
“If you can’t speak English and you don’t know how to operate an 18-wheeler — you should not be operating on American highways,” Sheahan shared on X.
If you can’t speak English and you don’t know how to operate an 18-wheeler — you should not be operating on American highways.
Thanks to @Sec_Noem and @SecDuffy’s leadership and the partnership of @ICEgov and @IndStatePolice through 287(g), U.S. roads are being made SAFE again. pic.twitter.com/nxATORJrGb
— ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan (@ICEDeputy) October 30, 2025
