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BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Two current and two retired Massachusetts State Troopers are among six people charged in an alleged scheme where more than two dozen drivers were given Commercial Driver's Licenses (CDL) in exchange for bribes.
The suspects were identified as MSP Sergeant Gary Cederquist, 58, of Stoughton, Trooper Joel Rogers, 54, of Bridgewater, and retired Troopers Calvin Butner, 63, of Halifax, and Perry Mendes, 63, of Wareham. They were part of the Mass State Police CDL Unit, which administers the skills tests for drivers.
A 74-count indictment alleged that from May 2019 to January 2023, the troopers gave passing scores to drivers who either failed the CDL exam, or had not taken it at all. Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua Levy said the suspects used the code word "golden" to identify 17 CDL applicants who would be given special treatment.
Text messages allegedly sent by the suspects included, "This guys a mess. Lol. He owes u a prime rib 6inch. 4 compounds and no watch" and "Your buddy passed yesterday he owes you that's an automatic Fail leaving the door open!!!"
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Two civilians were also arrested in the investigation. They were identified as Scott Camara, 42, of Rehoboth and Eric Mathison, 47, of Boston.
Authorities also said Sergeant Cederquist worked with Camara, who owns a truck-driving school in Brockton, to falsely report that some MSP troopers had taken and passed a Class A CDL skills test.
Cederquist is also accused of conspiring with Mathison to give CDLs to drivers affiliated with a spring water company that Mathison worked for. Authorities said those applicants had actually failed the skills test, but Cederquist had accepted bribes, including free cases of bottled water and Arizona Iced Tea, to pass them. Retired Troopers Butner and Mendes were also accused of conspiring with Mathison.
Other bribes that Cederquist allegedly accepted included "a $750 granite post and mailbox; a new driveway valued at over $10,000; and a snow blower valued at nearly $2,000," according to a press release from acting U.S. Attorney Levy.
Massachusetts State Police said they became aware of the federal investigation in 2022 and immediately launched an investigation into the CDL unit while cooperating with federal authorities.
WBZ's Mike Macklin (@MikeMacklinWBZ) reports:
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