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Heavy traffic at the Indiana-Illinois border. (RiverNorthPhotography via Getty Images)

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Indiana is expanding its federal immigration enforcement partnership after in a joint sweep targeting illegal commercial drivers and English-language proficiency skills.

“The safety of our state is our top priority, and we’ll keep working with our federal partners to keep Hoosiers — and Americans — safe,” noted Gov. Mike Braun, as he stood alongside a top state trooper, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials and .

The group praised Indiana’s partnership with ICE that consists of 14 agreements with more than 200 officers trained in a task force model with the Department of ������ýland Security.

A recent joint Indiana-ICE operation in the northwestern part of the state near the Illinois border resulted in the arrest of 223 undocumented individuals, including 146 truck drivers. Many of those arrested had criminal records such as driving under the influence, assault, child abuse, burglary and drug trafficking, according to the governor’s office.

“Indiana is the Crossroads of America, and that’s something we’re proud of — but it also means we must stay vigilant about those using our interstates for crime and thus endangering our communities,” Braun said. “ICE is working with Indiana State Police to expand this program by incorporating additional state troopers assigned to the commercial vehicle enforcement division in our own state.”

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.

Thanks to … — Kristi Noem (@KristiNoem)

Of the apprehended drivers, 46 were driving Class 8 trucks and the remainder drove box trucks, delivery vans and other commercial vehicles, Noem said.

“CDLs issued were issued from over a dozen states,” she added. “Many of those individuals could have been licensed in a state somewhere and received their CDL in another state. But overwhelmingly, these individuals have come from sanctuary states such as California, Illinois and New York. If you are here driving on our streets illegally and our highways, you are endangering our citizens and your days are numbered.”

Braun remarked that because of Indiana’s unique geography and its many major interstates, more undocumented truckers are apt to pass through per square mile than in other states.

“We are going to work with DHS to keep our communities and our highways safe even though other places are making them the opposite,” he said.

“Trucks come through Indiana hauling everything from produce to hazardous materials to nearly every other type of commercial goods. Millions of pounds of freight moving on the highways every day,” Indiana State Police Superintendent Anthony Scott noted. “For the Indiana State Police, this is not about immigration status alone. It’s about public safety. An 80,000-pound truck in untrained hands is a dangerous thing,”

He also said enforcing commercial vehicle law does more than protect travelers in Indiana.

“It is also important to protect the overwhelming majority of lawful truckers and trucking companies who follow the rules and keep our roads safe for every motorist,” Scott said.

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