LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR PICKED UP SINGH IN STOCKTON, FLORIDA LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR JAY COLLINS SAYS HIS TRIP HERE TO CALIFORNIA IS NOT BUSINESS AS USUAL, NOT POLITICS AS USUAL. HE SAYS HE CAME HERE TO HELP BRING JUSTICE TO THE VICTIMS AND THEIR FAMILIES, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, HE’S BLAMING CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR GAVIN NEWSOM. THE MAN IN THE BLUE SUIT HOLDING THE RESTRAINTS OF SUSPECT. HARJINDER SINGH IS NOT A LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER. I DON’T WANT TO BE HERE TODAY. WE’RE HERE TODAY BECAUSE OF TRAGEDY. THREE LIVES LOST. HE’S FLORIDA’S LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR, JAY COLLINS. WHY DO YOU PERSONALLY WANT TO ESCORT THE SUSPECT TO FLORIDA? THERE’S LAW ENFORCEMENT. THAT’S THEIR JOB. BUT WHY DO YOU PERSONALLY WANT TO DO THAT? THIS ISN’T BUSINESS AS USUAL. THIS IS ABOUT LEADERSHIP. YOU HAVE FAILED POLICIES THAT GOT US HERE. GAVIN NEWSOM. THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA HAS FAILED TO TAKE A LEGAL IMMIGRATION SERIOUSLY IN FLORIDA. WE TAKE IT SERIOUS. 28 YEAR OLD SINGH WAIVED HIS EXTRADITION BACK TO FLORIDA IN A SAN JOAQUIN COURTROOM TUESDAY. THE FLORIDA HIGHWAY PATROL SAYS SINGH, SEEN HERE IN HIS CAB BEFORE THE DEADLY CRASH, MADE AN ILLEGAL U-TURN ON THE TURNPIKE, KILLING THREE PEOPLE IN A MINIVAN. THE STOCKTON MAN IS NOW AT THE CENTER OF THE POLITICAL DEBATE ABOUT ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION. HE FLED HERE BECAUSE OF THE FAILED POLICIES. THESE OPEN BORDER NONSENSE, THE FACT THAT YOU WANT TO BE A SANCTUARY STATE HERE BECAUSE GAVIN NEWSOM FAILS TO UNDERSTAND HIS OWN CITIZENS. SINGH CROSSED THE U.S. BORDER IN 2018 ILLEGALLY BEFORE NEWSOM WAS GOVERNOR. THAT SAME YEAR, WE FOUND DOCUMENTS SINGH APPLIED FOR ASYLUM. THE DMV SAYS SINGH’S COMMERCIAL DRIVER’S LICENSE IS A FEDERAL REAL ID. WE SPOKE WITH THE FLORIDA AUTHORITIES AND AFTER. AN INVESTIGATION, THE DEFENDANT REMAINED ON SCENE. HE ANSWERED THE QUESTIONS AND THEY DECIDED NOT TO TAKE HIM INTO CUSTODY AT THAT TIME. SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY RON FREITAS SAYS MARSHALS PICKED UP SINGH IN STOCKTON. IT’S UNCLEAR WHY HE LEFT FLORIDA. COLLINS COULDN’T CLEAR THAT UP, SAYING HIS ACTIONS OF TAKING SINGH BACK TO FLORIDA HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH POLITICS. THIS ISN’T A REPUBLICAN ISSUE. IT’S NOT A DEMOCRATIC ISSUE. IT’S NOT AN INDEPENDENT ISSUE. IT’S AN AMERICAN ISSUE. GOVERNOR NEWSOM HIT BACK, TWEETING FLORIDA LED A MURDER SUSPECT WALK CALIFORNIA POLICE HAD TO STEP IN AND ARREST HIM. AND NOW FLORIDA’S NEW LG IS STAGING A PHOTO OP TO PICK HIM UP. HARJINDER SINGH IS NOW BACK IN FLORIDA AND IS EXPECTED TO GO BEFORE A FLORIDA JUDGE FOR HIS FIRST COURT APPEARANCE. HE FACES THREE COUNTS OF VEHICULAR HOMICIDE AND POSSIBLE DEPORTATION BACK TO INDIA. REPORTING IN STOCKTON MICHELLE BANDUR KCRA THREE NEWS. GOVERNOR NEWSOM’S OFFICE ALSO SAID SINGH ENTERED THE COUNTRY UNDER PRESIDENT TRUMP AND RECEIVED A REISSUED FEDERAL WORK

Advertisement Immigration debate intensifies: Florida lieutenant governor personally retrieves suspect in triple turnpike killing Editorial Standards ⓘ

Harjinder Singh, a semi-truck driver from Stockton accused of causing a fatal crash on a Florida turnpike, was escorted back to Florida by Lt. Gov. Jay Collins Thursday. Collins criticized California’s immigration policies while emphasizing the need for justice for the victims.”I don’t want to be here today. We’re here today because of tragedy. Three lives lost,” Collins said. “This isn’t business as usual. This is about leadership. You have failed policies that got us here. Gavin Newsom, the state of California, has failed to take illegal immigration seriously. In Florida, we take it serious.”Singh, 28, waived his extradition in a San Joaquin County courtroom on Tuesday. The Florida Highway Patrol reported that Singh made an illegal U-turn on the turnpike, leading to the deadly crash involving a minivan. Singh’s case has become central to a political debate about illegal immigration.”He fled here because of the failed policies. These, open border nonsense,” said Collins. “The fact that you want to be a sanctuary state here because Gavin Newsom fails to understand his own citizens,” Collins said.Singh crossed the U.S. border illegally in 2018, before Newsom became governor, and applied for asylum that same year. His commercial driver’s license is a federal Real ID, according to the DMV. San Joaquin County District Attorney Ron Freitas said Singh was picked up by U.S. Marshals in Stockton after remaining on the scene and answering questions during the initial investigation in Florida.”We spoke with the Florida authorities, and after the investigation, the defendant remained on scene. He answered the questions, and they decided not to take him into custody at that time,” Freitas said.Collins couldn’t clarify why Florida law enforcement didn’t detain Singh. Collins insisted that his actions were not politically motivated. “This isn’t a Republican issue. It’s not a Democratic issue. It’s not an independent issue. It’s an American issue,” he said.California Gov. Gavin Newsom responded to the situation on X, stating, “Florida let a murder suspect walk, California police had to step in and arrest him and now Florida’s new LG is staging a photo op to pick him up. The guy who lost to Mickey Mouse is now proving that California’s so-called ‘sanctuary’ laws actually work. Thanks, Ron!” Singh is now back in Florida and is expected to make his first court appearance in the coming days, facing three charges of vehicular homicide and possible deportation back to India.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel