A frightening video that began circulating on social media captured the moment a Somali truck driver was caught speeding the wrong way on a U.S. highway.
According to The New York Post, the incident was recorded Wednesday morning (25) along Highway 61 near Troy, about 55 miles from St. Louis, in the U.S. state of Missouri.
On social media, Sean Duffy, the United States Secretary of Transportation, shared the video and revealed that the truck driver “could not read basic road signs” in English, despite holding a valid commercial driver’s license (CDL) issued by the state of Minnesota.
After being stopped by officers from the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the driver “failed to complete the English proficiency test,” Sergeant Dallas Thompson told FOX 2 Now.
“In Missouri, they must be able to understand English, take the test in English, and pass the road sign test here,” Thompson said, adding that both state and federal regulations require English proficiency for commercial drivers.
After the truck driver was removed from the road without causing an accident, authorities said he was issued a citation for driving the wrong way. No arrest was made, but the Minnesota Department of Public Safety has opened an investigation into the incident.
At the same time, Duffy confirmed that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the U.S. Department of Transportation launched an investigation into how the truck driver obtained his CDL without full knowledge of the English language.
It is worth noting that although commercial drivers were already required to demonstrate English proficiency to obtain a CDL in the United States, some states previously administered exams in multiple languages.
That changed in April of last year, when President Donald Trump determined that all CDL tests must be administered only in English, addressing concerns about language comprehension among drivers.
Pressure surrounding the issue increased in August after an Indian truck driver accused of killing three people in a crash in Florida had allegedly failed English proficiency and road sign tests.
After Trump signed an executive order designating English as the official language, more than 14,000 truck drivers were placed out of service for failing to meet basic requirements, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
Photo and video: X @BtcLabe. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
This just happened. Highway 61, north of Troy MO about 5 miles. This foreign invader was driving southbound in the northbound lane for about 3 miles. as I was going northbound, he nearly hit me head on before I pulled over to my left. I got on the southbound lane to follow him. pic.twitter.com/hyVU8vGizH
— MolonLabeBTC (@BtcLabe) February 25, 2026
