The Transportation Department issued a subpoena to New York as federal investigators probe a deadly Interstate 95 bus crash in Virginia, accusing the state of failing to provide records related to the commercial driver’s license of the driver involved in the wreck.
The subpoena, issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and obtained by the Washington Examiner, demands that the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles turn over documents connected to Jing Sheng Dong, the commercial bus driver believed to have been operating the vehicle involved in a multivehicle crash on Friday in Stafford County, Virginia.
According to the subpoena, federal investigators are seeking records related to Dong’s commercial driver’s license, entry-level driver training, and any documents connected to an investigation of a driving school identified as “7 CDL Driving School.”
The FMCSA said it was unable to obtain the requested records “through other reasonable means” and therefore resorted to issuing a subpoena. The agency ordered New York to provide the documents by 10 a.m. Wednesday and warned that failure to comply could result in criminal or civil contempt penalties.
The crash at the center of the DOT investigation took place early Friday on I-95 South near the Quantico exit in Stafford County, Virginia. Five people were killed as a result of the wreck, including a 13-year-old and a 7-year-old.
The preliminary investigation indicated that traffic had slowed for a work zone, but the bus reportedly driven by Dong did not slow for traffic and struck six vehicles. Thirty-four patients, three of whom had critical injuries, were transported to nearby hospitals.
Dong reportedly immigrated to the United States from China and does not speak English but obtained his CDL in New York in 2024, according to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.
“This is exactly why we are holding states accountable, enforcing the rules of the road, and cracking down on drivers who can’t speak English,” Duffy said.
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Duffy has made cracking down on CDL regulations and trucking safety central to his tenure at the helm of DOT. In February, he announced that all CDL tests would be required to be taken in English.
The DOT ramped up its push surrounding non-English-speaking and illegal immigrant truck drivers in August 2025 following a fatal crash on the Florida Turnpike in which the driver of the 18-wheeler responsible was an illegal immigrant who failed an English proficiency exam.