A 28-year-old Sikh truck driver from Sacramento was stabbed 17 times at a rest area in Wyoming, leaving him hospitalised with injuries to his neck, chest, arms and ribs. The attack took place just days after a controversial US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) social media post featuring a fictional “Mr Singh" sparked a backlash over allegations of anti-Indian and anti-Sikh stereotyping.
The driver, who asked to be identified only by his surname, Singh, told NPR that he was travelling towards Pennsylvania when he stopped at the Bitter Creek Rest Area along Interstate 80 early Sunday morning.
Singh said he was using the washroom when another man followed him inside and suddenly attacked him. The assailant allegedly beat him before pulling out a knife and stabbing him repeatedly, including in the neck and upper body. Singh managed to escape the bathroom but collapsed outside and called for help.
A Hispanic family at the rest stop came to his aid and helped him seek medical assistance. The family also provided authorities with information about the suspect’s truck.
Wyoming authorities later stopped the vehicle near Rawlins, about 70 miles from the rest area, and arrested 45-year-old Andrew Kris Bzdak. He has been charged with attempted first-degree murder.
Singh, who has worked as a commercial truck driver for around three years, remained in hospital. He told NPR that the attack had left him concerned about the safety of other Punjabi Sikh truck drivers travelling across the US.
The stabbing came days after a controversial DHS campaign targeting undocumented immigrants and unlicensed commercial drivers. Last week, the DHS posted an AI-generated graphic styled as a parody of the “Transformers" franchise. It showed a brown, bearded man wearing a head covering and addressed him as “Mr Singh", alongside the message: “Get off our roads; you don’t know how to drive, Mr Singh." The post also carried the slogan “Self-deport or find out."
The campaign was part of the Trump administration’s immigration-enforcement messaging and promotion of the CBP Home programme, which encourages eligible undocumented migrants to leave the US voluntarily. The “Mr Singh" post triggered criticism from Sikh and Indian-American advocacy groups, who said the use of a common Sikh and Indian surname in the depiction risked stereotyping an entire community. DHS subsequently removed the post following the backlash.
The attack has also drawn condemnation from US lawmakers. Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi said he was “horrified" by the stabbing and criticised the recent DHS post, arguing that rhetoric targeting Sikh and South Asian Americans must stop. He also thanked the family who helped Singh after the attack.
Senator Adam Schiff also condemned the attack, arguing that rhetoric targeting people on the basis of race or ethnicity can have consequences when it contributes to hostility and violence.
