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Ontario crash suspect Jashanpreet Singh's driving license was renewed a week before the fatal accident, claims Secretary Sean Duffy

New details in the Ontario crash investigation reveals that Jashanpreet had turned 21 weeks before the accident, but didn't upgrade his license in the way that he should have.
posted by Akanksha Mishra
Saturday 10/25/2025 at 3:39AM EDT
  • ISTANBUL, TURKEY - JULY 09: A drone photo shows an "ecological overpass" located at Northern Marmara Highway in Istanbul, Turkey on July 09, 2020. "Ecological bridges", have been built on highways by the Turkish Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure to protect both wild animals and prevent traffic accidents caused by wildlife. (Photo by Muhammed Enes Yildirim/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
    ISTANBUL, TURKEY - JULY 09: A drone photo shows an "ecological overpass" located at Northern Marmara Highway in Istanbul, Turkey on July 09, 2020. "Ecological bridges", have been built on highways by the Turkish Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure to protect both wild animals and prevent traffic accidents caused by wildlife. (Photo by Muhammed Enes Yildirim/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

    On Saturday, October 25, Fox News correspondent, Bill Melugin, shared a new update about the ongoing investigation into the Ontario crash. 

    Melugin's tweet stated that Jashanpreet Singh - the trucker who caused the crash - had renewed his federal REAL ID weeks before the crash took place. It also confirmed that Singh's possession of the ID was proof of his legal status in the US. 

    Melugin's tweet was since retweeted by Sean Duffy - the US secretary of transportation, who was visibly upset that his emergency action - which enforced stricter rules on REAL ID renewals - were ignored in Jashanpreet's case, and blamed the death of three people on it.

    The DOT has also addressed the matter, claiming that Singh had intitially received a restricted, non-domiciled CDL in June 2025.

    However, on October 15, after he turned 21, Jashanpreet should have ideally returned to the DMV to upgrade his CDL. 

    Had he done so, Singh "would have been subject to the emergency rule and found ineligible to retain the non-domiciled CDL due to Singh’s status as an asylum seeker," DOT states.

    However, Singh's license was upgraded automatically, with restrictions removed. 

    ​Jashanpreet Singh has pleaded not guilty to the charges he faces 

    Days after Jashanpreet Singh was arrested in relation to the multi-vehicular crash on the 101 Freeway (on Tuesday), he has pleaded not guilty on the charges he faces.

    His charges include one count of driving under drug infleunce causing injury, and three counts of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated.

    The 21-year-old, who is resident of California's Yuba City, was booked into the West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga on Tuesday itself, where he is being held without bail. 

    In the first court hearing, Singh was also appointed a public defender, as his next court hearing was scheduled for next month - on November 4.

    ABC News reports that a Punjabi interpreter is also expected to appear in the next court hearing. 

    The Ontario crash has also brought scrutiny over Jashanpreet Singh's nature of immigration into the US. According to the media outlet, the ICE has already registered an arrest detainer against him.

    This is because the authorities claim Singh arrived in the US illegally by crossing the southern Mexico-border in the 2022.

    While the names of the victims in the Ontario crash remians unknown at the moment, authorities have announced that three people died at the crash, while four others were injured and were receiving treatment in a hospital.​

    TOPICS: Jashanpreet Singh, Ontario crash


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