by Bryan Hyde
Over a three-month period, Indiana authorities have stopped and prosecuted nearly 300 illegal migrant truck drivers who were issued commercial drivers licenses (CDL) by states like New York and California.
The New York Post reports that Tony Ferraro, an aide to Indiana governor Mike Braun, told the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission that the state had arrested and prosecuted at least 283 undocumented drivers operating trucks.
JUST IN: Nearly 300 ILLEGAL ALIENS have been arrested for fraudulently using Commercial Driver’s Licenses from blue states pic.twitter.com/Igkg53aXd1
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Ferraro told the board that many of the drivers carried CDLs from states like California and New York, which don’t require U.S. citizenship to get a commercial license.
“That’s over three a day that we pulled out of trucks,” he said, according to the Chicago Tribune.
According to WIBC, Ferraro said the state has stepped up speed enforcement on expressways and on U.S. 30, describing the police presence as the strongest he’s seen in his 14 years living in the region.
Governor Braun commented that traffic safety remains a priority, which includes cracking down on illegal immigrant drivers operating commercial vehicles in Indiana.
In April of this year, Indiana became the first state in the country to enact a mandatory ban revoking non-domiciled CDLs from undocumented immigrants.
That law immediately canceled 1,790 CDLs of non-citizens who lacked valid work visas.
Following an order from the Trump administration in February that tightened restrictions, officials in the state of New York announced that they will no longer give commercial driver’s licenses to non-citizens.
The legality surrounding Indiana’s enforcement remains unclear.
Federal regulations say that a valid CDL issued by a state that didn’t require citizenship at the time may still permit a driver to legally operate a commercial vehicle.
WIBC reports that some legal experts have expressed concerns under those regulations, a valid license from another state could expose the Hoosier State to legal challenges.
Currently, operating a commercial vehicle without a valid, status-verified CDL in Indiana is now a Level 6 felony carrying a $5,000 fine for the driver.
Trucking companies caught employing illegal drivers face fines up to $50,000.
The Post reports that it’s unclear whether the undocumented drivers are being prosecuted on state or federal charges or whether they have been handed over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
In 2025, the federal government said non-domiciled drivers caused at least 17 fatal crashes and 30 deaths.
“For far too long, America has allowed dangerous foreign drivers to abuse our truck licensing systems – wreaking havoc on our roadways. This safety loophole ends today,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy. “Moving forward, unqualified foreign drivers will be unable to get a license to operate an 80,000-pound big rig. Under President Trump’s leadership, we are putting the safety of the driving public first. From enforcing English language standards to holding fraudulent carriers accountable, we will continue to attack this crisis on our roads head on.”
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Bryan Hyde reports for American Greatness. Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network and contributed to this story.
