Illegal immigrant truck driver charged in death of trooper who moved home to care for mom with cancer
An illegal immigrant truck driver who authorities say remained in the United States despite an order to leave has been charged in the death of a Pennsylvania State Police trooper who had recently moved into the home to help care for his mother during cancer treatment.
The crash is the latest in a series of fatal crashes involving noncitizen commercial truck drivers that led the Trump administration to tighten commercial driver’s license rules.
Michael E. Pahira Jr., 44, was inspecting a commercial vehicle on Interstate 81 in Schuylkill County Wednesday morning when another truck swerved off the road, striking the truck he was inspecting before striking the marked patrol vehicle and police. Pennsylvania State Police. After the accident, both trucks caught fire. Pahira later died at a local hospital.
The driver was identified as 33-year-old Haitian citizen Michael Bon. Lives in Brockton, MassachusettsHe was charged with vehicular homicide, involuntary manslaughter, reckless driving and six additional charges. He is being held in the Schuylkill County Jail on $700,000 bail. The next hearing date is scheduled for July 15.
The Department of Homeland Security filed an immigration detainer against him.
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Bon entered the United States via Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in July 2024, upon the instructions of the Biden administration. humanitarian parole program. He later applied for Temporary Protected Status but his application was rejected. DHS terminated his parole in June 2025 and ordered him to leave the country, but he remained in the United States.
Bon obtained a non-resident commercial driver’s license in March 2025 while living in Massachusetts. The Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles said he first became eligible for the license in 2025, when he was issued a permit to operate under federal law. It was renewed in February 2026, before the Trump administration ordered states to stop issuing or renewing non-resident CDLs for drivers who no longer meet federal eligibility requirements.
Pahira’s death comes as Transport Minister Sean Duffy has made tightening commercial driver’s license rules a top priority following a spate of fatal crashes involving non-resident CDL holders over the past two years.
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Last year, Duffy launched an audit of counties across the country. non-residential commercial driver’s licenses Following a series of fatal crashes, including crashes in Wyoming, Florida and California. In his State of the Union speech, President Donald Trump said: At least 17 fatal accidents, killing 30 people in 2025, occurred when immigrants living in the country illegally drove commercial vehicles with a CDL.
The Department of Transportation has also threatened to withhold federal funds from states that issue licenses to drivers who are ineligible under federal law. In April, the Department of Transportation withheld more than $73 million. Federal funding from New YorkHe said the state can no longer revoke commercial driver’s licenses issued to ineligible drivers. Duffy said the move aims to hold states accountable for allowing only qualified and properly inspected drivers behind the wheel of commercial trucks.
“Minister Duffy is focused on restoring integrity. America’s truck industry By ensuring truck drivers on our highways are qualified and vetted, “the Department is going after every link in the chain to eliminate the bad actors, fraudsters, and chameleon carriers who put American families at risk,” a Department of Transportation spokesperson previously told Fox News Digital.
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Transport Minister Sean Duffy said widespread fraud was allowing illegal immigrants to obtain commercial driver’s licences, posing safety risks.
(Getty Images)
Pahira became a trooper with the Pennsylvania State Police in 2007.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro called Pahira “the best of us,” saying the veteran had recently returned home to care for his mother, who was being treated for cancer.
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“I spent time with Mike’s parents, Patti and Mike, his sister, Jen, and some of their friends and military buddies,” Shapiro said during a press conference. “They told me about Mike; what a great guy he was, his high school wrestling background, his love of cooking, and his dedication to caring for his mother, who was battling cancer. Over the last few days, she helped him shave his head during his treatments.”
Original article source: Illegal immigrant truck driver charged in death of soldier who moved home to care for mother with cancer
