Semi Driver Taken Into ICE Custody in Fatal Crash That Killed Four Amish, Including Father and Two Sons (Updated)

The driver of the semi truck in Tuesday’s fatal wreck, Bekzhan Beishekeev, has been transferred from local custody to federal custody. No charges have been filed as of now related to the wreck, which happened in Jay County, Indiana, and claimed four Amish lives.

Rather, Beishekeev is being held separately by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). As reported by WANE 15, “Indiana State Police emphasized that the ICE custody is separate from the crash investigation.” More from WANE 15:

According to the Jay County Sheriff’s Office, Beishekeev was arrested through a bench warrant, meaning that his charges weren’t related to the crash. A bench warrant is used for individuals who fail to comply with certain court-ordered measures, usually in another county or state.

The sheriff confirmed Beishekeev was then picked up by Indiana State Police on an immigration warrant Wednesday and was turned over to federal authorities Thursday morning. Beishekeev, who is from Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia, was then taken into custody by ICE.

Beishekeev allegedly entered the US in late December 2024, and obtained a CDL license in Pennsylvania.

Due to questions over immigration status of the driver, this story has taken on a scale larger than one would expect for a fatal crash of the sort, with political voices weighing in from “both sides”.

Additionally, the fact that the victims are Amish, a generally sympathetic group, has also lent the story more national interest.

Here’s more from WANE 15 on Beishekeev’s entry into the US in their latest reporting:

The Department of Homeland Security confirmed Basha came to the US by using the Biden administration CBP One app. He was then issued a commercial driver’s license in Pennsylvania.

He will remain in ICE custody pending immigration proceedings. We’re told Indiana State Police will present their findings to the prosecutor’s office once the investigation is complete.

How did the crash happen?

Questions remain as to why Beishekeev crossed into the lane of oncoming traffic. The initial report says that a semi driver ahead of Beishekeev “slowed down for traffic”.

Was it lack of attention to the slowdown, followed by a reflexive reaction to veer out of the way? If that were the case, you also presumably had the option of veering onto the shoulder, rather than into the lane of oncoming vehicles.

In the latest reporting by WANE (video below), we can see the area of the crash site, and it appears to be relatively flat terrain, without a visible ditch.

But if it all happened in a split second, a person’s reactions are not always the most rational. Or, there may have been another obstacle on the shoulder area of the road that the driver was trying to avoid as well.

Until an explanation provided, people will speculate. And of course what I’ve done here is also just speculation, and with limited information. So of course it is best to wait for the outcome of the investigation. No information on how long the investigation might take.

Obituaries Published; Funerals Will Be Held Sunday & Monday

Now leaving aside the political and investigative aspects of this incident. Four men were lost in the wreck, leaving behind grieving families and communities.

The obituaries of the four victims have been published online (it’s not unusual for the Amish to have obituaries ending up online). Three are from the same family; a father and two of his sons. They are:

• Henry M. Eicher, 50, of Bryant, IN
• Menno H. Eicher, age 25, of Portland, IN
• Paul H. Eicher, age 18, of Bryant, IN
• Simon R. Girod, age 23, of Bryant, IN

As is typical for the Amish, they leave behind large families, and church communities that will miss and mourn them. The funerals for the members of the Eicher family will be held Sunday, and Simon Girod’s funeral will be Monday.

Update: Captain Describes Scene As “Chaos”; At Least* Five Amish People Total Were In Van. Daughter-in-Law Of Driver Speaks

An update from WISH TV gives us the perspective of a local long-serving law enforcement officer, Captain Patrick Wells of the Jay County Sheriff’s Office, who called it “one of the most horrific crashes I’ve seen”:

PORTLAND, Ind. (WISH) – Even after a decades-long career in law enforcement, Capt. Patrick Wells of the Jay County Sheriff’s Office struggled on Friday to think of many crashes that matched what he saw on State Road 67.

“I have been on the job almost 30 years and this would definitely rank among one of the most horrific crashes I’ve seen,” Wells said. “Just going to the scene was chaos.”

He was one of the officers who responded to Tuesday afternoon’s crash that ended with four people dead. Indiana State Police believe a semi swerved to avoid slowing traffic and struck a full-size van in the oncoming lane head-on.

Wells said the van, driven by 55-year old Donald Stipp of Portland, was transporting five Amish construction workers from a job site when the crash happened.

So based on this and other reports, it appears that there were a total of six in the van – Stipp and five Amish passengers, one of whom has survived, though I haven’t seen any updates on his condition. [*UPDATE: Multiple commenters who appear to be in the know are saying that there were actually six, or even seven Amish passengers in the van, so I’ve adjusted the text here to account for that].

I have seen it in one or two places erroneously suggested that the van was carrying 15 people, where that is actually likely the van’s total capacity.

As we saw in one of the crash scene photos, dozens of members of the Amish community arrived on the scene – also transported there by vans:

As word of the wreck spread, Wells said, as many as 60 or more Amish family members and friends arrived to help, and ultimately, grieve.

“Families started showing up,” Wells said. “They started bringing them up in vans.”

Here’s the WISH TV report:

In addition to this, the van driver’s daughter-in-law Shannon Stipp gave an update on her father-in-law Donald Stipp:

“I just prayed that he was okay. I was thankful that the seatbelt, he actually decided to wear a seatbelt because I’m sure that’s what saved him,” said Shannon Stipp, Donald Stipp’s daughter-in-law.

Shannon Stipp said her father-in-law drove the van for Amish families. She says paramedics rushed an unconscious Stipp to the hospital after the accident, where he had surgery on his arm.

“He’s doing really good, recovering a lot faster than we expected,” Shannon Stipp said.

That is good to hear about Donald Stipp. But reading between the lines, I wouldn’t be surprised if the passengers were not wearing seatbelts. This is not an uncommon practice for riders in passenger vans. I speak from my own experience in that as well.

Shannon Stipp also was asked for her thoughts on the driver’s legal status:

Shannon Stipp said her father-in-law remains in the hospital after the accident. When asked for her reaction to the legal status of the man who police say caused the accident, she expressed frustration.

“Anger, distraught, angry at this right now, a lot of the system right now with what’s going on, because that’s what allowed this to happen in the first place,” Shannon Stipp said.

“Just any driver in general, whether illegal or not, what he did was wrong, and (he) should have his license taken away and it doesn’t matter what his legal status is, you don’t drive semis like that.”

I appreciate her response here and can only try to imagine what one might feel in her shoes and those of other relatives of the victims. It unsurprisingly has become a politicized topic, but I think she is prudent in re-focusing, at least for now, on the matter of what happened in the crash itself.

It is hard to fathom why the driver operated his vehicle in the way he did (I have already speculated a bit above). I don’t think we yet know how qualified or capable a driver he was, though assumptions have been made based on what is known of his immigration and employment story.

The results of the Indiana State Police investigation and what might have led Beishekeev to drive into oncoming traffic have not been released, but hopefully when they are that will provide clarity, on that question at least.

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