SWEETWATER COUNTY, WYOMING — A truck driver accused of stabbing a fellow trucker 17 times in a restroom at the Bitter Creek Rest Area on Interstate 80 will stand trial in district court after a magistrate found enough evidence Wednesday, November 4, to move the case forward.
Andrew Kris Bzdak appeared at his preliminary hearing in Sweetwater County Circuit Court in an orange jail uniform, with his wrists cuffed to a chain around his waist. He showed little outward reaction in a packed courtroom. In less than an hour, Magistrate Ed Newell bound the case over to Sweetwater County District Court on a charge of attempted first-degree murder, which carries the possibility of life in prison. Prosecutors argued the evidence showed premeditated malice, an essential element of the charge.
The Attack
Emergency dispatchers received a report of a stabbing shortly before 3:30 a.m. on September 13 at the rest area, about 41 miles east of Rock Springs. The victim, Gurvinder Singh, 28, of Sacramento, California, a Sikh truck driver hauling freight on I-80, had stopped to use the restroom. He told investigators another man attacked him from behind. He pushed the man away and saw a knife he remembered as blue. Charging documents describe no conversation between the two men before the attack.
Investigators documented 17 lacerations, including two stab wounds to Singh’s neck and two to his chest. A woman in the neighboring restroom heard “grunting and screaming.” Moments later, a man ran from the building toward a waiting commercial truck. Singh staggered outside bleeding heavily and was airlifted to Wyoming Medical Center in Casper. He survived and was later released to keep recovering with his family.
How the Suspect Was Found
A family at the rest area followed the truck long enough to photograph identifying information from the truck and trailer, then passed it to investigators, according to the affidavit of probable cause. Wyoming Highway Patrol troopers were already searching I-80. Around 5 a.m., a trooper spotted the semi west of Rawlins and stopped it near Exit 209 by the Flying J truck stop, about 65 miles east of the rest area. Highway Patrol spokesman Aaron Brown said Bzdak complied, with no chase or confrontation. He was detained and the semi was impounded.
At the hearing, a sheriff’s deputy was the only witness. She testified about surveillance video and evidence recovered from the semi, including a reusable Walmart bag holding jeans, shoes, and used wet wipes that appeared to have blood on them. A camera on a semi parked outside the rest area captured Singh walking toward the restroom, followed shortly by a man investigators identified as Bzdak. Less than a minute after entering, that man ran out. Singh emerged badly wounded and collapsed on the pavement. The camera did not capture the stabbing itself.
Motive Still Unknown
The attack drew attention well beyond Wyoming, especially among Sikh and South Asian truck drivers concerned about their safety. U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Illinois, issued a statement in September about the stabbing and the broader climate facing Sikh and South Asian Americans. Wyoming U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman condemned the attack without speculating on motive. “Our truck stops should be the last place any driver finds themselves in danger,” she said.
Investigators have urged caution. “At this point, there’s no indication that it’s a hate crime,” Sweetwater County Attorney Daniel Erramouspe said in September. Sheriff’s spokesman Jeff Sheaman said, “We have zero motive.”
The Jakara Movement, a nonprofit supporting Punjabi Sikhs and other communities, helped Singh through his recovery and the legal process. “He is recovering well and remains in chardikala, rising spirits,” the group said in September. “We are grateful he is alive.”
All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Information courtesy of Cowboy State Daily.
📸 Image(s) used under fair use for news reporting.
