FORT PIERCE — The three victims of a fatal semi-truck crash on the Florida Turnpike near Fort Pierce earlier this month were Haitian immigrants who were traveling back to Indiana, two friends of one of the deceased told the Miami Herald.
Herby Dufresne, 30, whom the Florida Highway Patrol identified as the driver of the minivan that slammed into the 18-wheeler, killing himself and two passengers, had moved from South Florida to Indiana in hopes of finding work, said Livenson Pierre, a friend of Dufresne who lives in Canada.
Also killed in the tragic accident, which has garnered national and international attention, were Faniola Joseph, 37, and Rodrigue Dor, 54. Joseph, previously lived in Pompano Beach and Dor, in Miami.
A semi-truck driver, Harjinder Singh, caused a fatal crash on the Florida’s Turnpike on Aug. 12, killing three South Floridians, FHP said. He faces vehicular homicide and manslaughter charges. St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office
Had Haitian TPS status, friend says
Dufresne, according to a close friend in Haiti, arrived in Miami on Dec. 9, 2023, from Port-au-Prince. He was among the more than 200,000 Haitians who were legally paroled into the United States and given a two-year permit to live and work in the U.S. after obtaining a financial sponsor under the Biden-era humanitarian parole program for nationals of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela…