OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — A second joint enforcement operation between U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Oklahoma Highway Patrol (OHP) has resulted in the arrest of 34 truck drivers operating illegally along Interstate 40, officials announced.

The two-day initiative, called Operation Guardian, was conducted from October 28 to 29 near the Arkansas border and led to 70 total arrests, including 36 criminal aliens and several wanted on felony and international warrants. In total, troopers and federal agents interviewed about 500 people during the 15-hour operation.

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Among those detained, 26 had commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) issued by sanctuary states such as California, Illinois, and New York, while eight others were operating big rigs with no valid CDL at all. ICE officials said many of the truck drivers could not read or speak English, violating federal language proficiency standards for commercial drivers.

“For the second time in just the past month, Oklahoma and ICE have joined forces to protect public safety along our highways,” said ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Executive Associate Director Marcos Charles. “Many of the illegal aliens arrested behind the wheel of an 80,000-pound tractor-trailer can’t even read basic English, endangering everyone they encounter on the roads.”

Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt praised the operation’s success, stating, “To lawfully operate a commercial motor vehicle in Oklahoma, you must be here legally and able to understand English. These are common-sense standards that we will continue to enforce.”

The latest operation follows a similar one in western Oklahoma in September, which led to the arrest of 91 illegal truck drivers and 120 total suspects, some with prior convictions for crimes such as DUI, assault, drug trafficking, and human smuggling.

ICE said the individuals arrested in the latest sting came from 15 countries, including Mexico, India, China, Colombia, Turkey, and Venezuela. Several remain under investigation for additional immigration and criminal offenses.

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