ST. LUCIE COUNTY – While state officials announced the arrest of a man in connection with an Aug. 12 crash on Florida’s Turnpike that left three dead, questions remain about the incident and the arrest.
The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles stated Aug. 16 that Harjinder Singh, whose age and city of residence were not provided, was in custody on vehicular homicide charges and immigration violations.
The deadly crash happened about 19 miles north of the Fort Pierce exit when the driver of a northbound semi-truck and box trailer is accused of trying to make a U-turn at the “official use only turn around” area. The semi-truck was in the outside lane.
Meanwhile, a northbound 2015 Chrysler minivan with a driver and two passengers was in the inside lane. The semi-truck driver is accused of trying to make the U-turn, crossing all northbound travel lanes. The minivan crashed with the left side of the trailer, and was wedged beneath it.
The minivan passengers – a 37-year-old Pompano Beach woman and a 54-year-old Miami man – died at the scene. The minivan driver, a 30-year-old Florida City man, died after being taken to HCA Florida Lawnwood Hospital in Fort Pierce.
FHP did not provide names of the three who died.
Lt. Indiana Miranda, Florida Highway Patrol spokesperson, declined Aug. 18 to answer questions about where and when Singh was taken into custody, under what circumstances he was taken into custody and where he is being held.
“Like stated, this is an active traffic homicide investigation we are not releasing anything else at this time,” Miranda stated via e-mail.
According to a St. Lucie County Jail official on Aug. 18, Singh is not at the St. Lucie County Jail.
Defendants typically are booked in at the jail in the county in which the crimes of which they are accused occurred. Defendants arrested elsewhere on warrants can be extradited back to the county and state in which the crimes of which they are accused occurred.
The St. Lucie County Clerk’s office did not have records related to Singh’s apprehension.
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In a news release about the crash before Singh’s name was released, the driver of the semi-truck was identified as a 28-year-old man from Stockton, California. His passenger was identified as a 25-year-old man from Yuba City, California.
State officials reported determining Singh entered the United States illegally in 2018 via the border with Mexico. He got a commercial driver’s license in California.
Singh is expected to be deported after his state level charges are concluded, according to statements from Dave Kerner, executive director of the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
Will Greenlee is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Will on X @OffTheBeatTweet or reach him by phone at 772-267-7926. E-mail him at will.greenlee@tcpalm.com.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Unanswered questions after 3 die following crash on Florida’s Turnpike
