‘Golden handshakes’: MSP troopers passed failed CDL applicants in exchange for kickbacks, feds say
Four current and former Massachusetts State Police troopers, as well as a pair of civilians, have been charged in connection with an alleged bribery scheme to give “guaranteed passing scores” to commercial driver’s license applicants in exchange for kickbacks that included the repaving of a driveway, a new snowblower, and high-end bottled water, federal investigators said.
A grand jury on Tuesday morning returned a 74-count indictment charging troopers Gary Cederquist, 58, of Stoughton, Calvin Butner, 63, of Halifax, Perry Mendes, 63, of Wareham, and Joel Rogers, 54, of Bridgewater, with conspiracy, extortion, mail fraud, false statements, and falsifying records, Joshua S. Levy, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts, announced during a news conference at federal court in Boston.
Four arrests were made Tuesday morning, including troopers Cederquist and Rogers, as well as civilians Scott Camara, 42, of Rehoboth, and Eric Mathison, 47, of Boston, according to Levy. Two retired troopers, Butner and Mendes, were nabbed Monday in Florida.
“They’ve been indicted for their role in an alleged scheme to falsify the results of commercial driver’s license tests,” Levy said. “These are the types of licenses that people who are driving trucks or large vehicles need to secure to operate them safely. The indictment alleges that these defendants gave passing scores to people who didn’t pass the tests.”
In return for passing unqualified applicants, Levy said that Cederquist received personal benefits including a $10,000 driveway makeover, a $2,000 snowblower, and a $750 granite post and mailbox, among an array of other items.
It’s alleged that Cederquist also received a K-Cup machine, Polar Seltzer, bottled VOSS and Fiji water, boxes of coffee and tea, and cases of Twizzlers and Swedish Fish candy as kickbacks.
“In short, the CDLs were for sale and troopers were bribed with free goods to pass applicants no matter how they performed on the tests,” Levy said.
The issuance of CDLs is governed by federal law and requires operators to pass a vehicle inspection, a basic skills test, and a road test to operate large vehicles on roads and highways.
“These rules exist for one simple reason: To prevent death and injuries from the operation of commercial vehicles,” Levy said.
CDL tests are administered at the state level and the Massachusetts State Police Commercial Driver’s License Unit, which Cederquist was in charge of, is tasked with overseeing the examinations.
Starting in August 2018, three troopers working in that unit used their positions to falsify results on basic skills tests for certain CDL applicants, according to Levy. The indictment alleges that Rogers joined that conspiracy in 2022.
Camara and Mathison either provided free goods or conspired with the troopers to pass applicants who either failed, took an abbreviated version of the test, or didn’t test at all, Levy said.
“These defendants displayed no regard for the public safety consequences by allowing people who didn’t pass the tests to have a CDL,” Levy said.
The indictment showed that the troopers jokingly talked about “golden handshakes” and “golden treatments” in text messages, referring to giving guaranteed passes to CDL applicants, regardless of how they scored on the test.
According to the charging document, Cederquist, Butner, Mendes, Rogers, and others conspired to give preferential treatment to at least 17 CDL applicants by agreeing to give passing scores on their skills tests whether or not they passed, using the code word “golden” to identify these applicants who received special treatment. The indictment alleges that the following texts, some by Cederquist and others by Butner, were sent about some of these applicants:
“Your buddy passed yesterday he owes you that’s an automatic Fail leaving the door open!!!;”
“This guys a mess. Lol. He owes u a prime rib 6inch. 4 compounds and no watch;”
“Your buddy is a mess. He owes you big time. He will be fine though. Anything for you;”
“Golden mess. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣;”
“He’s a mess Class A truck 2psi loss with truck running truck cut our again while timing 🤣🤣🤣🤣;” and
“Total mess this guy I think some time we should just do what we can but not golden.”
Additionally, it is alleged that Cederquist gave preferential treatment to four Class A CDL applicants who were MSP Troopers by falsely reporting that each trooper took and passed a Class A skills test. Levy said that Cederquist conspired with Camara, who worked for a truck-driving school in Brockton, to accomplish this offense.
Cederquist is also accused of conspiring with Mathison, who worked for a spring water company that employed drivers who needed CDLs, to give passing scores to certain applicants affiliated with the water company. The indictment also alleges that Cederquist described one such applicant as “horrible,” and “brain dead,” but gave him a passing score anyway in exchange for a snow blower.
The four troopers facing charges made the following salaries in recent years, state records showed:
Cederquist: $194,191 in 2023, $331,619 in 2022, and $244,888 in 2021
Rogers: $175,804 in 2023, $184,881 in 2022, $161,327 in 2021
Butner: $81,378 in 2023, $159,893 in 2022, $157,166 in 2021
Mendes: $2,000 in 2023, $94,721 in 2022, $178,632 in 2021
Levy concluded his remarks by saying this case is a “sober reminder that none of us are above the law.”
In a statement, the State Police Association of Massachusetts said the public’s trust is very important to them:
The Association is devoted to the welfare of not just our Troopers and their families, but also the people of Massachusetts who are committed to the principles of justice, accountability, and transparency.
As an Association, we were disappointed to learn of the recent indictments involving two current and two former members. We will closely monitor the developments of this case while respecting the legal process and the due process of those involved.
The public’s confidence in law enforcement is critical to achieving our goals of public safety and security. As the newly elected President of the Association, I take these allegations seriously and urge everyone to wait until a thorough examination of the facts is public in order to ensure that the case is adjudicated in a fair and impartial manner.
An investigation remains ongoing.
Read the full 74-page indictment below:
Us Attorney Cdl Indictment by Boston 25 Desk on Scribd
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