Noem Announces 223 Illegal Aliens Arrested in Indiana, Midway Blitz

(INDIANA, NEAR THE ILLINOIS STATE LINE) The Department of Homeland Security said October 30, 2025 that a joint 287(g) operation with the Indiana State Police led to the arrest of 223 illegal aliens on highways in Northwest Indiana near the Illinois border, including 146 truck drivers, as part of Chicago-based Operation Midway Blitz. Officials said more than 40 of the drivers carried Commercial Drivers Licenses and that the top states issuing these Commercial Drivers Licenses were Illinois, California, and New York.

Announcing the enforcement push, Secretary Kristi Noem said the operation targeted criminal activity tied to illegal aliens operating on interstates near the state line. The list of alleged crimes among the 223 people arrested included driving under the influence, drug trafficking, theft, burglary, assault, child abuse, domestic battery, prostitution, and fraud. Authorities said the effort focused on Interstate corridors in Northwest Indiana and formed part of Operation Midway Blitz, which DHS described as a Chicago-based initiative.

“Far too many innocent Americans have been killed by illegal aliens driving semi-trucks and big rigs. And yet, sanctuary states around the country have been issuing illegal aliens commercial driver’s licenses. The Trump Administration is ending the chaos,” said Secretary Noem.
She added that Operation Midway Blitz has already removed over 140 illegal alien truck drivers in Indiana. “The brave men and women of ICE and the Indiana State Police are working nonstop to get criminal illegal aliens out of our communities and off our roads.”

Indiana’s governor said the state’s role as a national transportation hub made the operation a priority for public safety.

“Indiana is the Crossroads of America, and that’s something we’re proud of — but it also means we must stay vigilant about those using our interstates for crime and thus endangering our communities,” said Governor Mike Braun.
He added, “The safety of our state is our top priority, and we’ll keep working with our federal partners to keep Hoosiers — and Americans — safe.”

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement leaders framed the arrests as part of a broader, ongoing push to remove threats on roadways central to commerce.

“ICE launched operation Midway Blitz to remove illegal alien threats to public safety, which is exactly what we have done in Chicago. We recognized from the start that this must include protecting roadways carrying interstate traffic and cargo. Sanctuary policies like those in Illinois sadly don’t recognize borders, and ICE and the Indiana State Police have successfully arrested hundreds of illegal alien truck drivers who should not be operating on our highways,” said ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons.
He continued, “In recent weeks, we have seen illegal semi-truck drivers responsible for significant loss of life across the country. This was preventable, and that is precisely why we are working to ensure this doesn’t happen in Indiana or Illinois.”

Officials said the operation in Indiana was conducted under 287(g), which DHS described as a partnership with state authorities to identify and act on immigration violations alongside criminal violations uncovered during the stops. ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan said the arrests were a product of that collaboration in the region around the Illinois state line.

“This operation wouldn’t have been as successful as it was without our strong 287(g) partnership with the Indiana State Police. Protecting communities from criminal illegal aliens also includes those posing safety threats on our interstates,” said ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan.
She added, “When cities and states partner with us, communities are safer, and as this operation has proven, our efforts in Indiana extend protection to those living in the sanctuary state of Illinois as well.”

DHS highlighted two recent cases that officials said underscored the risks of illegal aliens driving heavy commercial vehicles on U.S. roads. In August, ICE lodged an arrest detainer for a criminal illegal alien—Harjinder Singh—following his arrest for three counts of vehicular homicide while driving a semi-truck in Florida. Last week, ICE lodged an arrest detainer for a criminal illegal alien—Jashanpreet Singh—who killed three people in California while driving an 18-wheeler under the influence. While separate from the Indiana operation, DHS presented these examples to emphasize what it called a “disturbing pattern” of criminal illegal aliens driving commercial vehicles on American roads, leading to deadly crashes. The agency positioned the Indiana arrests as a direct attempt to reduce such risks on the stretch of interstates near the Illinois border.

In the Indiana sweep, authorities said at least 146 of those arrested were truck drivers, and that more than 40 among them held Commercial Drivers Licenses. Officials said the top three states issuing the CDLs were Illinois, California, and New York. The department linked the licensing issue to the enforcement strategy in Operation Midway Blitz, arguing that sanctuary states had issued Commercial Drivers Licenses to people who are in the country unlawfully and that these drivers were now operating heavy rigs on Midwestern corridors. The DHS release presented images labeled “Drivers license 1,” “Drivers license 2.0,” and “Drivers license 3” as examples tied to arrests in the operation.

Secretary Noem tied the results directly to the administration’s broader enforcement agenda.

“Far too many innocent Americans have been killed by illegal aliens driving semi-trucks and big rigs,” she said, repeating the claim that sanctuary jurisdictions were issuing Commercial Drivers Licenses to illegal aliens and asserting, “The Trump Administration is ending the chaos.”
Noem said Operation Midway Blitz “has already removed over 140 illegal alien truck drivers in Indiana,” and praised the work of ICE agents and Indiana State Police troopers working the highways near the state line to find and arrest drivers they identified as threats.

ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons linked the Indiana arrests to actions his agency took in and around Chicago. He said the agency recognized the need to protect roads carrying interstate traffic and cargo and argued that sanctuary policies “don’t recognize borders,” pointing to coordination with the Indiana State Police to remove illegal alien drivers he said “should not be operating on our highways.” He added,

“In recent weeks, we have seen illegal semi-truck drivers responsible for significant loss of life across the country,”
and called the tragedies “preventable,” framing the Midway Blitz as a way to prevent similar crashes in Indiana or Illinois.

Indiana’s governor cast the enforcement activity as an extension of the state’s approach to highway safety.

“Indiana is the Crossroads of America,” Governor Braun said, adding that the same interstates that help commerce can be used by people committing crimes and endangering drivers.
He said the state would continue to work with federal partners “to keep Hoosiers — and Americans — safe.”

ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan emphasized the 287(g) framework with Indiana State Police as a key factor in the arrests near the Illinois state line. She said that when cities and states “partner with us, communities are safer,” and argued that success in Indiana could extend protection to those living in Illinois. Her comments echoed the DHS position that sanctuary policies beyond Indiana’s borders still affect highway safety in Northwest Indiana, where traffic flows constantly between the two states.

Officials said the list of criminal charges associated with the arrests covered a wide range, including driving under the influence, drug trafficking, theft, burglary, assault, child abuse, domestic battery, prostitution, and fraud. The department did not break down the counts by category but presented the list to explain why Operation Midway Blitz focused on illegal aliens driving heavy vehicles and other commercial traffic. DHS said the use of Commercial Drivers Licenses by some of those arrested was a central concern because the licenses authorize operation of semi-trucks and other large commercial vehicles on interstate highways.

DHS also tied licensing to employment authorization questions in the press release, saying that people in the country unlawfully should not be in a position to obtain Commercial Drivers Licenses that allow operation of big rigs. The department said more than 40 of the arrested drivers possessed Commercial Drivers Licenses and again pointed to Illinois, California, and New York as the top issuing states among those cases. DHS officials argued that the Indiana arrests were a step to get illegal aliens “off our roads,” while noting that the operation was one part of a Chicago-based response to what they described as a pattern of criminal activity tied to illegal aliens in commercial transportation.

The department’s description of Operation Midway Blitz placed the Indiana action within a broader geography centered on Chicago, with Northwest Indiana serving as a key corridor where enforcement could be felt quickly. DHS said the arrests took place on highways near the Illinois state line, highlighting that area as a heavy-traffic zone for interstate freight and passenger movement. By focusing on truck drivers and other motorists identified as illegal aliens, the department said ICE and state troopers aimed at both immigration enforcement and public safety, removing what it called “criminal illegal aliens” from communities and “off our roads.”

The agency pointed to August and the previous week’s cases involving Harjinder Singh in Florida and Jashanpreet Singh in California to support claims of a national pattern of deadly incidents involving illegal aliens behind the wheel of large commercial vehicles. ICE lodged detainers in both cases, DHS said, and presented those examples to explain why Operation Midway Blitz included targeted enforcement along interstate routes in and around Indiana and Illinois. The department did not provide additional details about those two cases in the Indiana announcement beyond the charges and locations.

In rolling out the numbers from Indiana—223 illegal aliens arrested, including 146 truck drivers—DHS said the results showed the scope of the problem on regional highways and the reach of Operation Midway Blitz beyond city limits. Officials said that the department’s 287(g) partnership with Indiana State Police made the scale of enforcement possible and that the cross-border movement around the Chicago metro area required action on both sides of the state line. Throughout the announcement, DHS used the arrests to argue for tighter controls on Commercial Drivers Licenses and closer cooperation with states in the Midwest, with particular focus on the source of CDLs that officials said were found among those arrested.

The department directed the public to its announcement for further details on the Indiana arrests and the enforcement effort tied to Operation Midway Blitz. A copy of the DHS statement can be found on the Department of Homeland Security website.