4 current and former Massachusetts State Troopers among 6 charged in Commercial Driver's License bribery scheme
BOSTON - Two current and two retired Massachusetts State Troopers were among six people arrested in an alleged Commercial Driver's License application scheme, investigators said Tuesday.
The U.S. Attorney's Office said the six people are charged in a 74-count indictment. It claims they ran a bribery conspiracy to "falsify records and give guaranteed passing scores to certain Commercial Driver's License applicants."
At a news conference Tuesday, acting U.S. Attorney Joshua Levy said more than two dozen drivers got CDLs since August 2018, without taking or passing the exam.
"In short, as alleged in this indictment, the CDLs were for sale and troopers were bribed with free goods to pass applicants, no matter how they performed on the test," Levy told reporters.
The current and former troopers were identified as Gary Cederquist, 58, of Stoughton, Calvin Butner, 63, of Halifax, Perry Mendes, 63, of Wareham and Joel Rogers, 54, of Bridgewater. All four were part of the State Police CDL Unit, which administers the skills tests for drivers. Cederquist was a Sergeant in charge of the unit.
The other two named in the indictment are civilians - Scott Camara, 42, of Rehoboth and Eric Mathison, 47, of Boston. Both are said to be friends of Cederquist.
Levy said Cederquist, Butner, Mendes, Rogers and another person, only identified in the indictment as "the Trooper Conspirator," all took part in the scheme, calling the transactions "golden handshakes" in text messages to each other.
Cederquist was given a new driveway worth more than $10,000, a $2,000 snow blower, free landscaping work and a new $750 mailbox in exchange for licenses, according to Levy.
"The indictment alleges that Cederquist described one such applicant as "horrible," and "brain dead," but gave him a passing score anyway in exchange for the snow blower," the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a statement.
State Police became aware of the federal investigation at the end of 2022. Cederquist and other unit members were transferred to different assignments in February 2023. Cederquist was later suspended.
Duty status hearings were held for both Cederquist and Rogers on Wednesday morning and both were suspended without pay indefinitely. Cederquist retired Thursday from the department with a dishonorable discharge.
Butner retired in 2022 and Mendes retired in 2021.
The CDLs are governed by federal law. States run the tests and issue the licenses. Levy said drivers must pass three segments - vehicle inspection, basic control skills and a road test - to legally drive tractor trailers, oil tankers, school buses and other large vehicles.
Fewer than half the drivers in Massachusetts usually pass the CDL test.
"These standards and regulations exist for one very simple reason. To protect and prevent death and injuries from the operation of commercial motor vehicles. It's to make sure that everyone operating these types of rigs at high rates of speed on highways or in neighborhoods has the required skill to operate them safely," Levy said.
"The Department condemns the actions of the four current and former CDL Unit members as alleged in the federal indictment and our internal affairs investigation," Interim State Police Superintendent Colonel John Mawn Jr. said in a statement.
"The alleged misconduct of those defendants is the antithesis of and in stark contrast to the values, character, and integrity exhibited by the overwhelming majority of our Troopers every day in service to the public."
State Police said they have since taken several steps to update the CDL Unit, including requiring troopers to wear body cameras for all CDL exams.
Butner and Mendes, the two retired troopers, were arrested Monday in Florida. The other four were arrested Tuesday and were arraigned at the federal courthouse in Boston. All pleaded not guilty and were released on the condition that they surrender their guns and don't talk to any witnesses or co-defendants. They're due back in court on March 29.
