Texas DPS worker handed out 215 fake CDLs for bribes, says FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) says that they have uncovered a scheme that allowed hundreds of unqualified applicants to receive a commercial drivers license (CDL) in exchange for thousands of dollars worth of bribes.
The FBI says that between January 2017 and June of 2019, a San Antonio Department of Public Service (DPS) employee issued 215 fraudulent CDLs, mostly to people of Cuban descent.
FBI says DPS employee in San Antonio area took bribes to fraudulently issue 215 trucker licenses https://t.co/ZfeQPnvTXm
— mySA (@mySA) July 8, 2019
On Monday, July 8, FBI special agent Monroe Giese testified in a federal court in San Antonio against the two defendants in the case — Marino Maury Diaz-Leon, 52, and Fernando Guardado Vazquez, 40, who are facing charges of conspiracy to commit mail fraud. MySA reports that both men are truckers and both are legal U.S. residents of Cuban descent.
The FBI says that Diaz-Leon and Vazquez offered thousands of dollars worth of bribes to an unnamed DPS employee. In exchange for the bribes, CDL were issued to applicants who either hadn’t passed their skills tests or hadn’t even shown up for the test at all.
The scheme was reportedly uncovered during a 2018 audit during which it was discovered that the DPS employee had issued an unusual number of CDLs. Further investigation revealed that over 200 of those CDL applicants had never been scheduled for a skills test.
The FBI has not released the name of the DPS employee, but that employee has been suspended and is cooperating with authorities.
If they are found guilty, Diaz-Leon and Vazquez face up to 20 years in prison and deportation.