A criminal illegal immigrant who was released into the U.S. under the Biden administration and began working as a commercial truck driver has been arrested over alleged ties to terrorism, federal authorities announced Monday.
Akhror Bozorov, 31, hails from Uzbekistan, where authorities issued a warrant for his arrest in 2022 for allegedly belonging to a terrorist organization, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said. Authorities in Uzbekistan accused him of distributing terrorist propaganda calling for jihad online and recruiting terrorists to join the jihad movement.
ICE arrested Bozorov on Nov. 9 while he was working as a commercial truck driver, driving an 18-wheeler in Kansas.
ICE said that Bozorov was issued a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) in Pennsylvania while Gov. Josh Shapiro was in office. Officials added that he was granted authorization to work in January 2024 under the Biden administration.
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Akhror Bozorov was arrested for his alleged ties to terrorism, federal officials said. (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement)
“Not only was Akhror Bozorov — a wanted terrorist — RELEASED into the country by the Biden administration, but he was also given a commercial driver’s license by Governor Shapiro’s Pennsylvania,” Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. “This should go without saying, but terrorist illegal aliens should not be operating 18-wheelers on America’s highways. Biden and Mayorkas allowed countless terrorists to come into our country.”
She added: “President Trump and Secretary Noem unleashed ICE to target these national security threats.”
ICE said Bozorov was issued a CDL from Pennsylvania. (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement)
Bozorov’s license indicated he was living in the Somerton section of far northeast Philadelphia, a suburban-feeling neighborhood at the edge of the city limits, which has recently seen an influx of Russian and Arabic residents.
In Pennsylvania, noncitizens with temporary or permanent resident status can currently qualify for PennDOT licenses. State lawmakers in Pennsylvania, where Republicans control the Senate and Democrats run the House, are battling over the issue in earnest.
PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll stated in 2024 he supported such a move toward “undocumented” immigrants receiving licenses with proper “safeguards” in place.
In response to an inquiry, Alexis Campbell – a spokeswoman for PennDOT – said Pennsylvania “issues both commercial and non-commercial driver’s licenses only to non-U.S. citizens who can provide documentation proving their lawful presence in the United States.”
“When non-citizen applicants appear at a Driver License Center in Pennsylvania, PennDOT reviews immigration and naturalization documents, which are confirmed in real-time against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) website before issuing any driver’s license. PennDOT is prohibited from publicly disclosing information about an individual’s driver record due to state and federal privacy laws.”
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Fox News Digital reached out to Shapiro for further comment.
Bozorov illegally entered the U.S. in February 2023, according to ICE. Border Patrol arrested Bozorov upon entry, though ICE said the Biden administration then released him into American communities.
Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said illegal aliens should not be operating trucks on American highways. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)
Bozorov’s recent arrest comes as the Trump administration is putting increased scrutiny on states that issue CDLs to immigrants after an illegal immigrant truck driver was accused of causing a tractor-trailer crash that killed three people in Fort Pierce, Florida.
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Following the deadly crash, the Department of Transportation attempted to put restrictions on immigrants obtaining commercial driver’s licenses, but a federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., on Thursday ruled that the move cannot be enforced.
Fox News’ Bill Melugin contributed to this report.
