NRI PULSE STAFF REPORT
Okhlahoma City, OK, October 9, 2025: A three-day joint operation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Oklahoma Highway Patrol (OHP) along Interstate 40 led to the arrest of 120 undocumented immigrants, including 91 operating commercial 18-wheelers, officials announced this week. The enforcement action, which took place September 22–25, was part of Oklahoma’s ongoing collaboration with ICE under the federal 287(g) program, which allows local law enforcement to assist in identifying and detaining individuals in the country unlawfully.
According to ICE’s official statement, the sweep targeted “threats to public safety” and led to arrests involving individuals with prior convictions for DUI, human smuggling, drug trafficking, money laundering, and illegal re-entry into the U.S. Two individuals were also arrested near a marijuana grow operation.
While ICE did not disclose the nationalities of those arrested, several Indian news outlets and social media accounts have reported that 28 to 30 of those detained were Punjabi truck drivers working in the U.S. without legal documentation. These reports have sparked widespread discussion within the Indian diaspora, particularly among Punjabi trucking communities, which make up a visible part of the U.S. logistics workforce.
“Illegal aliens have no business operating 18-wheelers on America’s highways,” said ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan in a statement. “Our roads are now safer with these illegal aliens no longer behind the wheel. We encourage more state and local law enforcement agencies to partner with us under 287(g) to remove public safety threats.”
The crackdown follows several high-profile incidents involving undocumented truck drivers. ICE cited the case of Harjinder Singh, arrested in Florida and charged with three counts of vehicular homicide while driving a semi-truck, and another incident in California where an undocumented driver caused a crash that left a 5-year-old girl with life-altering injuries.
