Two Indian nationals, with a familiar last name of Singh, were busted with more than 300 pounds of cocaine hidden inside the sleeper berth of a semi-truck in Indiana.
The criminal illegal aliens hail from Gov. Gavin Newsom’s California, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement lodged detainers for the two men, identified as Gurpreet Singh, 25, of Fresno, Calif., and Jasveer Singh, 30, of Santa Clara, Calif.
The two men now accused of trafficking cocaine were issued commercial driver’s licenses in California, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
“With a lethal dose of cocaine being as little as 1.2 grams, that is enough to kill more than 113,000 Americans,” DHS said in a statement.
They each face a charge of dealing narcotics, a Level 2 Felony, and ICE deportation holds were placed on both individuals. The two occupants were arrested without incident and transported to the Putnam County Jail.
Indiana State Police discovered during a traffic stop on Saturday, Jan. 3 on Interstate 70 in Putnam County. ISP seized 309 pounds worth of cocaine with an estimated street value of $7 million, according to local reports.
DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin blasted Newsom’s “reckless policies” and the blatant disregard for public safety by allowing illegal immigrants to obtain CDLs and ignoring ICE detainers.
“Gavin Newsom and his fellow sanctuary politicians even refused to honor an arrest detainer on one of these criminal illegal aliens in December,” McLaughlin said in a statement. “Sanctuary policies put American lives at risk. ICE law enforcement lodged arrest detainers to ensure these drug traffickers are not allowed back into American communities.”
Gurpreet Singh illegally entered the U.S. on March 11, 2023, near Lukeville, Ariz., and was released into the country under the Biden administration. Gurpreet Singh freely admitted to law enforcement that he was a citizen of India and illegally in the U.S., DHS said.
Jasveer Singh illegally entered the U.S. on March 21, 2017, near Otay Mesa, Calif. He was arrested on Dec. 5, 2025, for receiving stolen property in San Bernardino, Calif.
ICE lodged an arrest detainer. Due to Governor Newsom’s sanctuary polices, the detainer was not honored, and this criminal illegal alien was released back into American communities, DHS said.
According to Indiana State Police, a trooper stopped the semi-truck near the Cloverdale exit, between Terre Haute and Indianapolis, for a routine DOT compliance inspection.
The blue International semi tractor-trailer was traveling eastbound on I-70 when it was pulled over. The trooper, who is assigned to the Indiana State Police Interdiction Team, observed “criminal indicators” and called out a K-9 unit for further inspection.
The K-9 unit gave a positive alert, which led to a probable cause search of the semi tractor and trailer. The cocaine was hidden inside the sleeper berth of the truck. The semi was traveling from Joplin, Mo., to Richmond, Ind., police said.
Indiana State Police Superintendent Anthony Scott said the seizure highlights the importance of full-time interdiction patrols aimed at keeping illegal drugs off Indiana roadways and out of local communities. The investigation remains ongoing.
Indiana Gov. Mike Braun applauded the seizure. His office issued a news release and said Braun has made public safety a major priority by increasing drug interdiction efforts and law enforcement funding.
The bust is part of an ongoing effort by the Indiana State Police and their partners to interdict dangerous drugs being transported through the state and dismantle large-scale drug organizations.
“Indiana has zero tolerance for drug traffickers,” Braun said. “Through coordinated efforts with federal and local partners, the Indiana State Police are proactively stopping dangerous drugs from entering our communities and harming Hoosier families.”
The semi-truck loaded with cocaine is the latest in a string of incidents involving illegal truckers from India who obtained non-domiciled CDLs in California.
In October, Jashanpreet Singh was driving an 18-wheeler — reportedly under the influence of drugs — on the I-10 Freeway in Ontario, Calif., when he plowed into slow-moving traffic and caused a fatal accident that killed three people. The Indian national crossed the southern border in 2022 and was released by the Biden administration.
In August, Harjinder Singh, who crossed the southern border illegally in 2018, was charged after making an illegal U-turn that caused a crash and killed three people in Florida. He obtained a commercial driver’s license in California. Officials investigating the wreck said he failed English and road sign tests.
In September, the Department of Transportation issued new, stricter rules for non-citizens to obtain a commercial driver’s license in the U.S.
The Trump administration has threatened to withhold millions in federal highway safety funding from California for failing to comply with federal English language proficiency standards for commercial truck drivers.
In the latest saga with CDLs in California, the state and feds are feuding over the California Department of Motor Vehicles’ recent announcement that it would delay canceling more than 17,000 illegally issued CDLs.
On Dec. 23, two civil rights groups filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of the truckers to stop the state from revoking the CDLs of 21,000 immigrant truckers beginning on Jan. 5.
The California DMV postponed the action by 60 days, after the agency agreed in November to cancel the licenses due to administrative errors and mounting pressure from the Trump administration.
An audit found that the agency issued more than 17,000 CDLs to immigrants with expiration dates that went past when the drivers were legally allowed to be in the U.S. Other problems included instances where the state failed to prove it had checked a driver’s immigration status, FOX 11 Los Angeles reported.
