Truck Driver Arrested After Fatal Crash on Highway 99 Near Lodi

A semitruck driver has been arrested and faces multiple felony charges following a fatal multi-vehicle crash near Lodi, California, that left two people dead and five others hospitalized. Federal immigration authorities are seeking to take him into custody.

The crash occurred shortly before 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday on northbound Highway 99, south of Harney Lane. According to the California Highway Patrol, the driver, identified as 24-year-old Manvir Singh, was operating a Freightliner Cascadia that failed to stop, striking the rear of a Kia Forte. The impact triggered a chain reaction involving two other vehicles, a Nissan Frontier and a Toyota Camry. The two male occupants of the Kia, aged 16 and 20, were killed. Five other individuals were transported to hospitals with injuries ranging from moderate to major.

Authorities said Singh attempted to flee the scene on foot but was apprehended nearby by law enforcement. He was booked into the San Joaquin County Jail on charges of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, hit-and-run resulting in death or injury, and obstructing or resisting a police officer. His bail was set at $185,000, and he is scheduled for a court appearance.