Truck driver Tamir Singh thought he’d picked up a haul of compression springs to drive from North York, Ontario to Ohio. Border agents in Detroit found more than 2,200 pounds of marijuana worth approximately $3.2 million and detained him.
Singh’s lawyer, attorney Ellen Michaels, made the case that because of Covid-19 regulations, he never got out of the truck while the cargo was being loaded. Mr. Singh was an unwitting victim of a drug-smuggling scheme.
“I had not done anything wrong,” Singh told the Detroit Free Press.
The speculation is that marijuana dealers hacked into the trucking company’s computers, created a fake order for springs, and then packed the trailer with marijuana.
“He had no knowledge of what was in his truck,” Michaels said. For now, federal prosecutors have dropped the charges.
Prosecutors stated in court documents the, “government needs additional time” to “identify all other individuals who should be held criminally responsible.”
In a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, spokeswoman Gina Balaya said, “The complaint was dismissed and the defendant released in order to allow the government to investigate further and decide whether criminal prosecution of Singh is appropriate.”
The U.S. attorney’s office filed a request with the court to have the criminal complaint against Singh dismissed without prejudice. This allows prosecutors to refile the charges at a later date.
During his 16 days locked up, Singh, a native of India, missed his naturalization ceremony in Canada. He has since returned to his home in Windsor, Ontario.
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