2 Miami-Dade traffic school employees arrested in scheme to fake driver's license test results, officials say
Two Miami-Dade traffic school employees were arrested Tuesday for allegedly submitting falsified test results to help applicants fraudulently obtain Florida driver's licenses, officials announced.
The Miami-Dade County Tax Collector's Office, the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office, the Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, and the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office conducted a joint investigation into the alleged fraud scheme.
Luis Vidal, 55, from Millennium Traffic School in Sweetwater, and Daniel Degado, 57, from Amigos Traffic School in Miami, face charges of unlawful use or possession of a driver's license, official misconduct by a public servant, and falsifying/tampering with public records.
The Tax Collector's Office said it first identified information that raised concerns while working to combat appointment scalping and other abuses of the driver licensing process. It then referred that information to the Sheriff's Office, which launched a criminal investigation and obtained arrest warrants for Vidal and Delgado.
Undercover detectives conducted separate operations targeting both Vidal and Delgado, with a deputy posing as an applicant to take driving tests. The deputy was able to pass the driver tests even though they committed several traffic violations that should have disqualified an applicant, MDSO said in a press release regarding the arrests.
Investigators are still working to determine whether additional people, including possible intermediaries or brokers, were involved.
Miami-Dade County Tax Collector Dariel Fernandez said the office acted immediately once concerns were identified.
"A driver's license is not something that should ever be obtained through a shortcut, a back door or a fraudulent test result," Fernandez said. "The public deserves confidence that every person issued a Florida driver's license has met the requirements established by law."
Fernandez said his office is now conducting a comprehensive review of driver license transactions involving private driving schools.
"If anyone attempted to manipulate this process, we will uncover it and work with our law enforcement partners to hold them accountable," he said.
The investigation remains active. Officials said additional information will be released in coordination with the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office and the State Attorney's Office as it becomes available.