DHS confirms DUI charge against non-English-speaking driver in Virginia crash that killed 5
FIRST ON FOX — The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed to Fox News Digital that a non-English-speaking naturalized U.S. citizen from China accused of causing a Virginia crash that killed five people and injured dozens more Friday morning is now facing charges for driving under the influence and without a valid license.
Jing Sheng Dong, 48, of Staten Island, New York, is charged with five counts of involuntary manslaughter and one count of reckless driving, according to a statement from the Stafford County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office.
A DHS spokesperson confirmed to Fox News Digital on Tuesday he is also charged with driving while intoxicated and driving without a valid license on the day of the fatal crash.
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National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) officials said that on the day of the crash, Dong was driving a bus from New York to North Carolina along Interstate 95 when he struck a line of vehicles that had slowed down in a work zone at "a high rate of speed."
A family of four traveling from Greenfield, Massachusetts, to attend a wedding were killed, along with an unidentified 25-year-old woman from Worcester, Massachusetts.
Among the family members killed were a 13-year-old girl and a 7-year-old boy, according to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.
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Dong, who did not speak English, received his commercial driver's license from New York in 2024, Duffy said.
Court records obtained by The Associated Press show he was previously accused of speeding 18 miles per hour over the limit in Colonial Heights, Virginia, in November 2024 and speeding 22 miles per hour over the limit in Annapolis, Maryland, in March.
He also has a pending trespassing case in Mecklenburg County, Virginia, and was naturalized under the Obama administration on Aug. 14, 2012, DHS officials said.
"Unacceptable. 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 wrote in a statement on X. "If you can’t be properly trained, read our road signs, or communicate with law enforcement, you have no business driving a bus."
He added investigators are reviewing New York licensing records, training documentation and Dong's history.
U.S. Department of Transportation special agents were seen at a home connected to E&P Travel Inc., the bus operator based in Kings Mountain, North Carolina.
The company’s CEO is listed as Shuo Liu, who also reportedly leads Triple Group Inc., based in Charlotte, North Carolina, according to North Carolina state business records obtained by WBTV.
The listed address for the Charlotte business is a bus stop in a strip mall, and signs at the location advertise regular transportation service between the bus stop and New York City’s Chinatown, the outlet reported.
"Any company, trainer, or school that contributed to putting an unqualified driver on the road will face intense scrutiny," Duffy said. "My prayers are with the loved ones of the innocent lives lost and those who were hurt in this horrific crime."
The NTSB launched a team to investigate the crash.
E&P Travel Inc. did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. Dong could not immediately be reached for comment.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.