FRESNO, California — Fresno police arrested City Council District 1 candidate Naindeep Singh late Saturday, October 24, or early Sunday near the Tower District on suspicion of driving under the influence of a substance, Fresno City Attorney Andrew Janz confirmed.
“I can confirm at this time that my office has been notified that a Naindeep Chann Singh was arrested and taken into custody for driving under the influence of a substance last night near the Tower District. He was transported to a local hospital for testing. I will defer all further questions to Fresno Police who are investigating this alleged offense,” Janz told Independent in the Field.
The San Joaquin Valley Sun separately reported the arrest on October 25 under the headline “Fresno City Council contender Naindeep Singh arrested on drug-related DUI,” noting it came just over a week ahead of the November election. The Sun also reported that Fresno Police confirmed the arrest to GV Wire on Sunday night, and that Singh had led the June primary with 38.69 per cent of the vote to Rob Fuentes's 36.52 per cent.
Source: The San Joaquin Valley Sun (Daniel Gligich, Oct 25, 2026)
According to Janz, police pulled Singh over for probable cause, and another law-enforcement source said he was stopped for swerving and an expired tag. Singh consented to a blood test and was taken to Community Regional Medical Center; the test results had not come back. He was arrested but released to a family member and was not booked into the county jail, Janz said. Fresno police had not provided more information on Sunday and were expected to on Monday.
Singh, 48, is the executive director of the Jakara Movement, a Central Unified School District trustee, and a candidate for the open District 1 seat representing west-central Fresno, in a contested race against attorney Rob Fuentes, according to Fresnoland's candidate guide.
Source: Fresnoland (Fresno City Council District 1 candidate guide, Oct 5, 2026)
Messages to Singh were not returned, the report said. Fuentes criticized the arrest in a statement, saying public safety “demands sound judgment and personal accountability.” The arrest is an allegation of a suspected offence; no charge has been proven in court, and Singh is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.