United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers have arrested a Kenyan man following a tractor-trailer crash in Tennessee.
The Kenyan, identified as Eric Maloba, was arrested in Hamblen County after the crash, with ICE saying he is an immigration violator who was in the country illegally at the time of his arrest.
According to ICE, Maloba holds a Texas commercial driver’s licence and was reportedly instructing a trainee seeking a commercial driver’s licence when the accident occurred.
“A 287(g) Task Force partner arrested Eric Maloba, an illegal alien from Kenya, following a tractor-trailer crash,” ICE said in a statement.
Investigators determined that Maloba was holding a commercial driver’s licence issued in Texas and was reportedly training another person to obtain a commercial driver’s licence when the crash occurred.
ICE said Maloba has since been taken into its custody and is being held pending removal proceedings.
Immigration officials said Maloba initially entered the United States legally in October 2018 but overstayed his authorised period of admission in April 2019.
His subsequent immigration status became the basis for his arrest by authorities following the Tennessee crash.
“Maloba is now in ICE custody pending removal,” the agency said.
ICE used the case to highlight the Trump administration’s broader crackdown on immigrants who it says are unlawfully in the United States and hold commercial driver’s licences.
The agency said the case demonstrated the importance of strengthening immigration enforcement, expanding partnerships under the 287(g) programme and increasing removals.
ICE also linked the arrest to efforts by US authorities to tighten scrutiny of commercial truck drivers and address immigration violations within the commercial driving sector.
Following his arrest, Maloba was placed in immigration custody pending proceedings to determine his legal status and whether he should be removed from the United States.
The 287(g) programme allows participating state and local law enforcement agencies to enter agreements with ICE to perform certain federal immigration enforcement functions.
ICE said partnerships under the programme are part of its efforts to identify and arrest immigrants who are subject to removal from the United States.
