FMCSA shuts down 4 more 'chameleon carriers' after deadly 'illegal alien' crash in Indiana

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Thursday announced a "MAJOR UPDATE" in the investigation into Bekzhan Beishekeev of Kyrgyzstan, the truck driver involved in the February crash in Indiana that killed four. 

At the time of the crash, Duffy noted the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration was investigating an interconnected network of "chameleon carriers" within hours of the fatalities. Similarly, Department of Homeland Security swiftly announced the driver was a "criminal illegal alien."

Now Duffy has announced that FMCSA shut down Beishekeev's fleet, along with four related entities. 

"FMCSA's investigation has tied FOUR ADDITIONAL CARRIERS to this crash and put ALL of them OUT OF SERVICE," Duffy wrote on social media. 

Here are the four carriers newly declared OOS. 

• KG Line Group Inc, with 310 power units on its Safer profile with FMCSA, based in Steamwood, Illinois.
• Tutash Express 1 LLC, 2 power units, Hoffman Estates, Illinois.
• RPM Hauling, 20 power units, Peru, Illinois.
• Valcins Trucking LLC, 5 power units, also in Peru, Illinois. 

This is in addition to Illinois carriers AJ Partners LLC, with 111 units out of Hoffman Estates, and one-unit Sam Express of Palantine, both of which FMCSA shut down in February. 

Duffy called the group a "coordinated CHAMELEON CARRIER network" where "operators change their names and DOT numbers to HIDE from law enforcement."

Prior Overdrive reporting on AJ Partners uncovered a Kyrgyz language video titled, roughly, "I came to the city of Chicago to buy a new truck in the USA, God willing. We’ll see whether it works out or not.”

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The video shows a man speaking Kyrgyz and buying a new truck, then the seller showing him how to quickly change DOT numbers on the door by swapping magnetic plates. 

A still from the fleet's video showing how the group quickly changes DOT numbers.Other online sleuths claimed to uncover additional fleets with some associations to the group, but U.S. DOT has yet to comment on them. 

Secretary Duffy has blamed the network for the "horrific crash," yet said officials were "not done yet" investigating the carriers and that FMCSA would leave no stone unturned. 

FMCSA's rapid action to shut down these fleets represents a break from past norms. Hope Trans, the company behind the fatal I-20 crash June 28 last year, kept its operating authority for months after the crash. 

FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs has recently stressed increasingly focused attention to fraudulent carriers, bad CDL schools, and ELD cheats. 

"We're biting off a lot at FMCSA, but we’re going to keep chewing and keep going after it to make sure our American roadways are safe," Barrs said at a press conference in February announcing a series of intensified steps to reign in rule-breaking operations around trucking. 

"If you’re not following the rules," he added, "we’re going to put you out of business." 

Barrs further stressed moves against "chameleon carriers" and other enforcement focus areas during a talk delivered later in February at the annual symposium of the Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association. Hear it in full via Overdrive Radio below.