Trucking news and briefs for Thursday, May 21, 2026:
Detroit trucking school suspended for shorting trainees of instruction hours
The Michigan Department of State (MDOS) has summarily suspended the operations of a Detroit truck driving school for violations of the Driver Education Provider and Instructor Act (DEPIA), a Michigan law governing driver education providers and instruction.
MDOS said it found that Detroit Training Center Inc. charged students for hours of commercial driver’s license (CDL) instruction they did not fully receive, costing them money and creating barriers to completing the federally required training needed to enter the trucking industry.
The MDOS Driver Education Unit issued a summary suspension to the school, located at 5151 Loraine St., on May 14 after an initial investigation by MDOS found the school misled students by providing fewer CDL instruction hours than it had contractually promised for completing the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Entry-Level Driver Training curriculum requirements.
MDOS also allegedly allowed students to sign or initial training documents containing blank fields that the school later completed.
Michigan officials also alleged that the school failed to have a written agreement with students before instruction began, allowed individuals who were not the owner or designated representative of the school to sign student contracts, failed to maintain required student records, and kept records somewhere other than its established office location as required.
This is an ongoing investigation. No classes or other instruction may be held during the suspension period.
MDOS inspects and investigates driver education providers and instructors to ensure compliance with DEPIA. Anyone who has concerns regarding Detroit Training Center Inc. or another Michigan driver education provider can file a complaint online.
Truck driver arrested for allegedly smuggling 42 illegal immigrants
A 43-year-old Beaver, Oklahoma-based truck driver has been charged with smuggling numerous illegal immigrants, as well as possession with intent to distribute meth, announced Acting U.S. Attorney John G.E. Marck in the Southern District of Texas.
On May 16, Juan Nasario-Reyes allegedly drove a white Volvo tractor-trailer to the Border Patrol checkpoint in Sarita, Texas, where authorities noticed his nervous behavior. According to a complaint filed in court, he claimed his vehicle was empty and he was alone, but a K-9 alerted to the sleeper portion of the tractor and the front of the trailer.
At secondary inspection, law enforcement discovered four illegal aliens concealed inside the cab area and 38 more inside the trailer, according to the complaint.
The charges further allege the trailer had been latched shut from the outside with no means for the individuals inside to open the doors or escape.
A subsequent search allegedly revealed water bottles, trash, a cushion and a bucket for urination inside the trailer. According to the complaint, the temperature inside the trailer was approximately 92.5 degrees.
The illegal immigrants were from the countries of Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Ecuador, Peru, Columbia, Cuba and Brazil, according to the charges.
Authorities also allegedly located approximately 16 grams of meth, a glass pipe and glass funnel inside a headphone box in the cab area.
If convicted of the human smuggling offenses, Nasario-Reyes faces up to five years in federal prison as well as a $250,000 maximum fine, while the drug charges carry a maximum of 40 years.
A total of 13 of the immigrants are facing either illegal entry or reentry charges, while the remaining are expected to be immediately removed from the country.
‘No Name Given’ CDL holder arrested for unlawful presence
The U.S. Border Patrol’s Yuma, Arizona, sector in April arrested an Indian national truck driver for being illegally present in the United States.
According to a post on X, the driver was in possession of a California-issued CDL with the first name of “No Name Given.” He was also allegedly driving a truck with a handwritten piece of paper as a license plate. Child sexual abuse material was also allegedly found on the subject’s phone.
The driver was turned over to Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Yuma to face criminal charges.
