Federal officials announced Wednesday that the suspect accused of causing a massive fatal pileup in Tennessee last week was an illegal immigrant who obtained a commercial driver’s license (CDL) in the "sanctuary state" of New York.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Transportation (DOT) said the suspect, 54-year-old Yisong Huang, illegally entered the country from Mexico in 2023. Officials added that Huang, who reportedly could not speak English, was released under the Biden administration and provided work authorization papers.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who has previously warned that illegal immigrants are obtaining commercial driver’s licenses (CDL), said this incident represents yet another example.

"It’s not just that Joe Biden let millions of migrants flood into our country illegally," Duffy said in a statement Wednesday. "His administration doled out the documentation these unqualified foreign drivers needed to obtain trucking licenses and operate 40-ton missiles on the highway. The fact that this individual failed a basic English test also calls into question how he even got the license in the first place."

ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CAUGHT DRIVING COMMERCIAL TRUCK WITH VALID NEW YORK CDL AT CALIFORNIA CHECKPOINT

Investigators reported that on Dec. 9, Huang was driving an empty bus on a major highway when he became "distracted by a video on his phone." 

The New York Post reported Huang was operating a tour bus. He allegedly rear-ended a tractor-trailer and triggered a chain-reaction crash that led to two injuries and the death of one American citizen, Kerry Smith, according to officials. 

Huang was later arrested and charged with vehicular manslaughter, according to the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office.  

Huang entered the U.S. illegally two years ago, according to the DHS. Officials said he admitted to Border Patrol agents that he was a Chinese national but was later released and given work authorization papers and a Social Security card. This allowed Huang to get a Class B CDL, a process that ultimately led to the deadly multi-vehicle crash, the agency alleges.

ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT TRUCK DRIVER IN FATAL CALIFORNIA CRASH SHOULD NEVER HAVE HAD LICENSE: DOT REPORT  

The New York State Department of Motor Vehicles told Fox News Digital on Wednesday that Huang’s license was issued on April 11, 2025, and that he presented all the proper federal documents to obtain one. His papers established a "lawful presence" until July 15, 2029, the agency said. 

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement on Tuesday: "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. The brave men and women of ICE are working nonstop to get criminal illegal aliens out of our communities and off our roads."

Duffy announced last Friday that a nationwide audit found more than 50 percent of New York’s non-domiciled trucking licenses — commercial licenses issued to non-legal residents of the state — were issued illegally.

According to Duffy, the state DMV "has been routinely issuing CDLs to foreign drivers illegally. The federal audit exposed a shocking 53 percent failure rate in the records sampled, indicating a total collapse in the administration of New York’s CDL program."

In response, New York State DMV spokesperson Walter McClure said Friday: 

"Secretary Duffy is lying about New York State once again in a desperate attempt to distract from the failing, chaotic administration he represents. Here is the truth: Commercial Drivers Licenses are regulated by the Federal Government, and New York State DMV has, and will continue to, comply with federal rules.  Every CDL we issue is subject to verification of an applicant's lawful status through federally-issued documents reviewed in accordance with federal regulations. This is just another stunt from Secretary Duffy, and it does nothing to keep our roads safer. We will review USDOT’s letter and respond accordingly."

Fox News Digital reached out to the Putnam County Sheriff's Office, Tennessee Highway Patrol and the Tennessee DOT for more information.

Canada's national governing body for skating, Skate Canada, is not allowing any of its national and international-level events to take place in Alberta amid the province's law that prohibits biological male trans athletes from women's sports. 

"Skate Canada considers a variety of criteria when selecting host locations for its national events. Following a careful assessment of Alberta’s Fairness and Safety in Sport Act, Skate Canada has determined that we are unable to host events in the province while maintaining our national standards for safe and inclusive sport," the organization told Fox News Digital.

"This decision applies only to national and international-level events and does not affect the ability of Alberta skaters to participate in Skate Canada programming and competitions. We will continue to monitor legislative developments in the province and will reassess hosting opportunities as circumstances evolve."

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Alberta was not scheduled to host any upcoming national or international events. The province last hosted the Skate Canada Challenge last month and the national championships in January 2024.

Alberta's Fairness and Safety in Sport Act "requires in-scope organizations to create and implement policies for athlete eligibility that align with requirements set out in the regulation, including limiting eligibility for female-only divisions to biologically female athletes." 

Skate Canada's decision to sanction the province prompted the swift criticism from Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, who condemned the organization in a statement on X. 

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"Women and girls have the right to play competitive sports in a safe and fair environment against other biological females. This view is held by a vast majority of Albertans and Canadians. It is also common sense and common decency. Skate Canada‘s refusal to hold events in Alberta because we choose to protect women and girls in sport is disgraceful," Smith wrote.

"We expect they will apologize and adjust their policies once they realize they are not only compromising the fairness and safety of their athletes, but are also offside with the international community, including the International Olympic Committee, which is moving in the same direction as Alberta."

The issue of trans athletes in women's sports has been a controversial subject in Canada, just as it has in the U.S., over the past year.

The topic was the source of a feud between two Canadian women's college basketball teams last season; Vancouver Island University, which rostered a trans player on its women's team, and Columbia Bible College, which was punished after allegations of abuse against that trans player. 

Meanwhile, the president of a Pride fest organizing group in Canada resigned in November amid immense backlash for comments questioning the fairness of transgender athletes in women's sports during a radio interview. 

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