A representative for Ukraine says at least a dozen truckers were arrested this summer
At least a dozen Ukrainian truck drivers who fled Russia’s war were arrested this summer amid federal and state crackdowns on noncitizens with commercial driver’s licenses, according to a representative for Ukraine; several remain detained. Separately, Oklahoma state troopers took Ukrainian truck driver Mykhailo Shekhtman, 55, into custody in February during a routine inspection.
More context
A federal and state crackdown on noncitizens with commercial driver’s licenses has swept up Ukrainian truck drivers who fled Russia’s war, The New York Times reported. A representative for Ukraine said at least a dozen Ukrainian truckers were arrested this summer and several remain in detention.
The Times reported that multiagency sweeps have intensified in Indiana, Oklahoma and Texas, where hundreds of immigrant truck drivers have been detained during traffic stops and inspections at weigh stations and highway checkpoints.
One driver, 55-year-old Ukrainian truck driver Mykhailo Shekhtman, had fled the war and settled in Georgia under a Biden-era humanitarian program for Ukrainians. Oklahoma state troopers took Shekhtman into custody during a February inspection, believing he was unlawfully in the United States, according to a Homeland Security arrest report. The report said he had no criminal record.
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The New York Times reports that at least a dozen Ukrainian truckers were arrested during the summer crackdown, with several still detained. Suara Garut also reports Ukrainian truckers facing detention in the crackdown, while Daily Wire, Breitbart, and The Oklahoman describe a separate, more recent multistate operation.