An El Cajon DMV manager is facing charges for allegedly supervising a bribery scheme that put forged licenses in the hands of truck and car drivers, the U.S. District Attorney announced Monday.
Hundreds of drivers obtained the licenses through recruiters who worked with five DMV employees over the past two years, according to the complaint issued by US Attorney Laura Duffy.
One of those employees was manager Jesse Mario Bryan. Duffy stated that he supervised the employees involved in the alleged bribery conspiracy.
Employees within the DMV first brought their suspicions to the US Attorney's office more than two years ago. The office worked with the FBI to investigate the possible corruption.
Using a mix of wire taps and undercover operations, investigators found that "recruiters" were soliciting people who wanted drivers licenses but could not obtain them.
The recruiters texted the applicants' information to the five DMV employees, who entered false passing scores on both written and driving tests, according to a previous statement from Duffy.
Applicants paid up to $600 for the Class A and C licenses. The bribes were split between the DMV employees and the recruiters.
"Commercial Class A driver licenses allow the licensee to drive commercial vehicles weighing more than 10,000 pounds, which can cause enormous harm to the public if operated incorrectly by an unqualified driver," according to a statement from Duffy's office.
The complaint lists 21 defendants charged with conspiracy to commit bribery and produce unauthorized identification documents.
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