WASHINGTON, D.C, – A U.S. Senator has launched a tip line intended to catch illegal immigrants and drivers.
Senator Jim Banks (R-Ind.) launched the TruckSafe Tipline for truckers and those who work in the trucking industry to share concerns about carriers employing or contracting with drivers who are not legally in the United States, who are not authorized to drive a truck, or who cannot meet required English-language safety standards.
The announcement was released on Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026.
The release stated that reports submitted to the TruckSafe Tipline will be reviewed and shared with the U.S. Department of Transportation and its Office of Inspector General “to help protect roadway safety and ensure a fair, lawful trucking industry.”
Banks justified the tip line citing traffic accidents that involved semi truck drivers that allegedly illegally driving a truck, or had an illegal immigration status.
“Indiana is the Crossroads of America and Hoosiers are getting killed because drivers who shouldn’t be here in the first place are behind the wheel,” Banks said. “If you’re driving a truck on our roads, you need to be legal, you need to be able to read traffic signs, and you need to follow the law. The TruckSafe Tipline gives people on the ground a way to speak up when they see carriers cutting corners and putting lives at risk.”
Banks also stated that US Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy is putting a number of trucking companies under investigation regarding hiring behaviors.
“These interconnected carriers have all the markings of FRAUD and are accused of being CHAMELEON CARRIERS,” Duffy said. “This is when companies swap names and DOT numbers to avoid enforcement.”
A crash that Banks specifically cited in his press release was a fatality that killed four in Jay County last week.
Indiana State Police stated in its release of information on the crash that the investigation showed that a 2019 International semi truck, driven by Gert Pretoruis, 44, of Geneva, was traveling east on State Road 67 near County Road 550 East when it slowed down for traffic.
A 2022 Freightliner tractor-trailer, driven by Bekzhan Beishekeev, 30, of Philadelphia, Penn., that was also eastbound did not stop and swerved into the westbound lane hitting a 2011 Chevrolet van that was driven by Donald Stipp, 55, of Portland.
The Jay County Coroner’s Office has identified Henry Eicher, 50, of Bryant, Menno Eicher, 25, of Bryant, Paul Eicher, 19, of Bryant, and Simon Girod, 23, of Bryant as the four people who were killed in the crash.
Bruce Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has lived in three states including Arkansas, Missouri and Georgia. During his nearly 20-year career, Bruce has served as managing editor and sports editor for numerous publications. He and his wife, Dana, who is also a journalist, are based in Carrollton, Georgia.
