Latest news with #Cederquist
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Yahoo
Massachusetts man convicted in CDL bribery scam
A former sergeant with the Massachusetts State Police is to be sentenced July 24 after he was found guilty in a scheme to accept bribes in exchange for providing CDL applicants passing test scores. Gary Cederquist, 59, of Stoughton, Massachusetts, was convicted on Friday by a federal jury. He had accepted bribes ranging from a new $10,000 driveway to a granite post and mailbox to cases of bottled water, The Boston Herald reported. Among the dozens of charges on which Cederquist was convicted were extortion, honest services mail fraud and conspiracy to commit extortion. He was acquitted of nine related charges. Cederquist, two other troopers and two civilians were accused in connection with the scheme, which was conducted from mid-2019 to early 2023, according to The Associated Press. Four of the five have pleaded guilty. The officers passed dozens of drivers who had failed CDL skills tests or hadn't even taken the tests, letting them know they had passed through a text and the word 'golden.' Cederquist called one applicant 'brain dead' and 'horrible' but passed him in exchange for a snowblower, the Herald reported. 'It is never a good day when a member of law enforcement is convicted of a crime, especially when it is a crime that compromises public safety,' U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley said in a news release. 'Gary Cederquist chose bribery and extortion over his oath to protect the community which he was sworn to serve. His greed put the public at risk when he devised a scheme to issue commercial driver's licenses to applicants who had never taken a real test to operate heavy commercial vehicles on the roads and highways of Massachusetts. The U.S. Attorney's Office has the utmost respect for law enforcement, but we will not stand idly by if they violate the law.' The AP noted that the CDL unit of the Massachusetts State Police, where Cederquist was in charge, has made several reforms in recent years, including: Requiring that body cameras be worn during exams. Conducting more frequent unannounced visits to the unit by supervisors. Having examiners at training sites. Developing new training procedures. The pass rate on the CDL skills test in Massachusetts was 48% in 2019, 44% in 2020, 41% in 2021 and 41% in 2022, the Herald reported. Related: Feds charge Massachusetts state troopers in alleged CDL bribery scheme The post Massachusetts man convicted in CDL bribery scam appeared first on FreightWaves.
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- Yahoo
Former Mass. State Police Sergeant convicted of extortion in CDL scheme
BOSTON (WWLP) – A former Massachusetts State Police Sergeant was convicted by a federal grand jury on Friday for giving out false passing scores to numerous Commercial Driver's License (CDL) applicants in a years-long conspiracy. Gary Cederquist, 59, of Stoughton, was charged in a 74-count indictment in January 2024, in addition to three other state troopers and two civilians. Charging documents stated that between February 2019 and January 2023, Cederquist arranged for him and his co-conspirators to give at least three dozen CDL applicants passing scores regardless of whether or not they had passed. Agawam man charged with possession of child pornography At this time, Cederquist was in charge of MSP's CDL Unit, which included former troopers 64-year-old Calvin Butner of Halifax, 64-year-old Perry Mendes of Wareham, and 56-year-old Joel Rogers of Bridgewater. These troopers conspired to give passing scores to some applicants in exchange for bribes, using the code word 'golden handshake' or 'golden' to identify those they would give special treatment to regardless of actual performance on the test. The CDL applicants included six MSP troopers who did not perform actual Class A skills tests but were falsely reported with passing grades. Cederquist was able to accomplish this offense by conspiring with 44-year-old Scott Camara of Rehoboth, who worked for a truck-driving school in Boston. The charging documents further stated that Cederquist gave false passing scores to applicants affiliated with a water company by accepting bribes of free inventory from the company. This was arranged through 48-year-old Eric Mathison of Boston, who worked for the water company. Mathison would deliver Cederquist's bribes to an office trailer at the CDL test site in Stoughton. These bribes included cases of bottled Fiji, VOSS, and Essentia water, cases of Arizona Iced Tea, coffee and tea products, and boxes of Twizzlers and Swedish Fish. Cederquist also accepted much larger bribes from Mathison in exchange for his services with the water company, including a $750 granite post and mailbox, a new driveway costing over $10,000, and a snowblower costing nearly $2,000. Many of the applicants who were given false passing scores by Cederquist and his co-conspirators were described as poor drivers, using phrases such as 'brain dead,' 'no idea what he's doing,' and 'should have failed about 10 times already,' but were still granted CDLs in exchange for bribes. Cederquist was convicted of: 2 counts of Conspiracy to Commit Extortion 1 count of Extortion 6 counts of Honest Services Mail Fraud 3 counts of Conspiracy to Falsify Records 19 Counts of Falsification of Records 17 counts of False Statements Butner, Mendes, Camara, and Mathison have all pleaded guilty to their roles in the conspiracy and are awaiting sentencing. Cederquist is scheduled to be sentenced on July 24. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Yahoo
Ex-Mass. state trooper found guilty in commercial driver's license scheme
A former Massachusetts State Police sergeant has been convicted on multiple charges in connection with a years-long bribery and extortion scheme involving falsified results on road skills tests. Gary Cederquist, 59, of Stoughton, was found guilty Friday by a federal jury of giving false passing scores to multiple Commercial Driver's License (CDL) applicants, including individuals who had failed or never took a CDL skills test, U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley's office announced. Read More: 'Golden handshake': How feds say troopers took bribes to pass unqualified drivers Cederquist was convicted of the following charges: Two counts of conspiracy to commit extortion One count of extortion Six counts of honest services mail fraud Three counts of conspiracy to falsify records Nineteen counts of falsification of records 17 counts of false statements Cederquist could face up to 20 years in prison on each charge of conspiracy to falsify records, conspiracy to commit extortion, extortion, honest services mail fraud and falsification of records. The charges of false statements each provide for a sentence of up to five years in prison. Read More: 2 Mass. State Troopers indicted for alleged bribery scheme suspended without pay Cederquist could also be slapped with millions of dollars in legal fines. His sentencing is scheduled for July 24. The former sergeant was originally charged in a 74-count indictment along with three other Mass. State Police troopers and two other men. They are: Calvin Butner, 63, of Halifax, a retired state trooper Perry Mendes, 63, of Wareham, a retired state trooper Joel Rogers, 54, of Bridgewater, a state trooper Scott Camara, 42, of Rehoboth Eric Mathison, 47, of Boston All men have since admitted to being involved in the conspiracy. Butner, Mendes, Camara and Mathison have all pleaded guilty to their charges and are awaiting sentencing, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Cederquist was in charge of the state police's CDL Unit. Butner, Mendes and Rogers were members, as well. Unit members are responsible for administering CDL skills tests for Class A (i.e. tractor-trailers) and Class B (i.e. box trucks, oil tankers, school buses) licenses. Read More: State Police identified in sweeping indictment of bribery scheme for driver's licenses From about February 2019 and January 2023, Cederquist and his co-conspirators gave passing scores to at least 30 CDL applicants — including six Mass. state police troopers — regardless if they actually passed the test. Oftentimes, the instructors would take the test themselves in exchange for bribes, including inventory from Mathison's water company valued in the thousands of dollars. Read More: State troopers, alleged accomplices plead not guilty to license bribery scheme Other bribes that Cederquist took were a $750 granite post and mailbox, a new driveway valued at over $10,000 and a snowblower valued at nearly $2,000, according to prosecutors. Cederquist once called an applicant 'horrible,' and 'brain dead,' but gave him a passing score in exchange for the snowblower. Cederquist and his co-conspirators used the code word 'golden handshake' or 'golden' for these applicants. Anyone who received a false passing score on their CDL skills test from this scheme have been reported to the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles. Mass. weather: Hail possible Saturday as thunderstorms swoop through state Bard College at Simon's Rock closure costs 116 their jobs Grant boosts Pa'lante's fight against gun violence Suspects nabbed after crashing stolen car into fire hydrant in Boston As week 2 of the Karen Read retrial wraps up, here are the biggest takeaways Read the original article on MassLive.
Boston Globe
02-05-2025
- Boston Globe
Retired Massachusetts State Police sergeant guilty of extortion, rigging license tests
US District Judge Indira Talwani scheduled sentencing for July 24. Advertisement 'It is never a good day when a member of law enforcement is convicted of a crime, especially a crime that compromises public safety,' US Attorney Leah B. Foley said in a statement after the verdict. Cederquist 'chose bribery and extortion over his oath to protect the community which he was sworn to serve,' Foley said. Three other former troopers who were indicted along with Cederquist resolved their cases prior to trial. Two of them, Calvin Butner and Perry Mendes, pleaded guilty as part of plea agreements and are awaiting sentencing. The third former trooper, Joel Rogers, was given a deferred prosecution agreement, which means charges will be dismissed if he abides by certain conditions. Two other men, Scott Camara, who worked at a commercial driving school in Brockton, and Eric Mathison, who worked at a water company, were charged in the scheme and also pleaded guilty prior to trial and are awaiting sentencing. Advertisement 'It was a fair trial,' Cederquist's attorney, Kevin Reddington, said after the verdict. 'He appreciates the work the jury put into the case.' He added that Cederquist 'is contemplating' an appeal, but will decide after he is sentenced. Until his indicment in January 2024, Cederquist had been in charge of the State Police commercial driving license unit, which administers skills tests for applicants seeking CDLs. The licenses are required to drive heavy vehicles, including tractor-trailers, box trucks, oil tankers and school buses. The verdict confirms that Cederquist abused his authority 'to recklessly bypass long-established testing and safety parameters for commercial driver's license applicants,' said Michael J. Krol, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations New England. 'He did so only to enrich himself, while turning a blind eye to the potential public safety implications of ill-prepared and unqualified commercial truck drivers navigating our streets and our highways.' Prosecutors allege the scheme resulted in more than three dozen people getting commercial driver's licenses between about February 2019 and January 2023 without passing the required tests. Prosecutors presented text messages to jurors that were exchanged between the troopers about giving a 'golden handshake' or 'golden,' meaning a passing score, regardless of how an applicant performed on the driver's test. In some cases, prosecutors allege, troopers exchanged text messages describing some of the drivers they passed as 'an idiot,' 'a mess,' or 'brain dead.' Applicants given preferential treatment on driver's tests included fellow troopers, relatives of active and retired police officers, a Seekonk firefighter, and a driver with connections to a tow company in Canton, according to the indictment. Advertisement Prosecutors alleged that Cederqist extorted a stream of benefits from difference businesses in exchange for giving passing grades on skills tests administered by the State Police unit in Stoughton. Prosecutors alleged that an asphalt company co-owner provided asphalt for Cederquist's driveway, valued at more than $10,000, and was later told that his son's application for a commercial driver's license was 'all set' and 'in the mail,' even though he never took the test. Prosecutors also presented evidence that Cederquist conspired with Mathison, his friend who worked for a water company, to give passing scores to CDL applicants affiliated with the company. In exchange, prosecutors alleged, Cederquist accepted bribes of free inventory from the water company, including cases of expensive bottled water, coffee and tea, as well as boxes of Twizzlers and Swedish Fish. The products were delivered to an office trailer at the CDL test site in Stoughton. Cederquist sent his friend a text describing one of the CDL applicants as 'an idiot,' who had 'no idea what he's doing,' and 'should have failed about 10 times already,' according to prosecutors. Shelley Murphy can be reached at
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Yahoo
‘Motivated by greed': Former MSP Sgt. found guilty in commercial driver's license bribery scheme
A former Massachusetts State Police Sergeant was convicted Friday in a bribery scheme that gave commercial driver's licenses (CDLs) to unqualified drivers in exchange for kickbacks, including a repaved driveway, and a new snowblower. Gary Cederquist, 59, of Stoughton, was convicted of two counts of conspiracy to commit extortion, one count of extortion, six counts of honest services mail fraud, three counts of conspiracy to falsify records, 19 counts of falsification of records and 17 counts of false statements. He was acquitted on one count of conspiracy to commit extortion, two counts of extortion, three counts of falsification of records and three counts of false statements. As head of the MSP's CDL Unit, Cederquist was charged in a 74-count indictment in January 2024 along with three other Massachusetts State Police troopers and two civilians for their alleged roles in the conspiracy. The co-conspirators include: Former Trooper Calvin Butner, 64, of Halifax; Former Trooper Perry Mendes, 64, of Wareham; Former Trooper Joel Rogers, 56, of Bridgewater; Scott Camara, 44, of Rehoboth; and Eric Mathison, 48, of Boston. Butner, Mendes, Camara and Mathison have all pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing, according to the Department of Justice. 'It is never a good day when a member of law enforcement is convicted of a crime, especially when it is a crime that compromises public safety,' said United States Attorney Leah B. Foley. 'Gary Cederquist chose bribery and extortion over his oath to protect the community which he was sworn to serve.' Charging documents allege between February 2019 and January 2023, Cederquist arranged for he and his co-conspirators to give passing scores to at least three dozen CDL applicants regardless of whether or not they had actually passed or even taken the test. The men used the code word 'golden handshake' or 'golden' to identify applicants who received special treatment. Court documents show Cederquist once described one applicant as 'horrible,' and 'brain dead,' but passed him anyways. In exchange for licenses, Cederquist and his co-conspirators accepted a variety of bribes such as inventory from Mathison's water company valued in the thousands of dollars, a $750 granite post and mailbox; a new driveway valued at over $10,000, and a snowblower valued at nearly $2,000, according to charging documents. 'Today's verdict sends a strong message to those who may be motivated by greed to abuse their positions—that they will be met with the full force of the criminal justice system,' said Elise Chawaga, Principal Assistant Inspector General for Investigations, Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General. 'DOT OIG remains committed to working with our Federal law enforcement and prosecutorial partners to uphold motor carrier rules and regulations, which are integral to maintaining safety on our Nation's roadways.' U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani scheduled Cederquist's sentencing for July 24. This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
