A Massachusetts police sergeant accepted gifts including a snow blower, a plunge pool and a granite mailbox in exchange for allowing people to pass their driver’s license test, federal prosecutors have said.
Two retired and two current Massachusetts State Police have been charged with falsifying records as part of the scandal, in which drivers allegedly passed their commercial driving tests in exchange for non-cash bribes that included everything from a new driveway to boxes of coffee.
The troopers are accused of giving preferential treatment to at least 17 commercial driver’s license candidates between May 2019 and January 2023. The troopers passed the drivers on a skills test and joked on text messages how badly a driver had performed, the indictment stated.
Sergeant Gary Cederquist, 58, of Stoughton, and Trooper Joel Rogers, 54, of Bridgewater, were arrested Tuesday. Calvin Butner, 63, of Halifax, and Perry Mendes, 63, of Wareham, both retired state troopers, were arrested in Florida Monday. All four face more than 70 counts on a range of charges including conspiracy to falsify records, extortion and making false statements.
Boston 25 News/U.S Attorney’s Office, Boston
Two others, Eric Mathison, 47, of Boston and Scott Camara, 42, of Rehoboth, were also charged. All four pleaded not guilty to the charges on January 30.
Butner and Mendes were arrested on January 29 in the southern and middle districts of Florida, respectively and will appear in court at a later date.
Newsweek has sought email comment on Friday from Cederquist’s attorney.
Cederquist, who also is accused of helping four state troopers get commercial driver’s licenses, is accused of accepting a new driveway worth $10,000; a snow blower worth $2,000 and a $750 granite mailbox. Cederquist also asked for a shed and a plunge pool in exchange for passing drivers.
According to the charging document Cederquist was in charge of the state police commercial drivers unit, of which Trooper Rogers and retired Troopers Butner and Mendes were members.
Members of MSP’s Commercial Driver’s License Unit (CDL) were responsible for administering CDL skills tests to commercial drivers.
Cederquist, Butner, Mendes, Rogers and others allegedly used the code word “golden” in text messages to identify these applicants who received special treatment.
U.S Attorney’s Office, Boston
Investigators downloaded the texts, which included the sentences: “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;”
Each of these applicants received a passing score on their skills test, prosecutors said.
Additionally, it is alleged that Cederquist gave preferential treatment to four MSP Troopers by falsely reporting that each trooper took and passed a Class A skills test.
It is also alleged that Cederquist conspired with his friend Mathison, who worked for a spring water company, to pass employees in exchange with cases of bottled Fiji, VOSS and Essentia water, cases of bottled Arizona Iced Tea, and coffee and tea products, all of which Mathison allegedly delivered to an office trailer at the CDL test site in Stoughton, Massachusetts.
Cederquist allegedly sent Mathison a text describing one of these applicants as “an idiot,” who had “no idea what he’s doing,” and “should have failed about 10 times already.” It is alleged that Cederquist then texted Mathison that Mathison’s boss “owes big time.”
The indictment also alleges that Butner assisted with this conspiracy, including by giving Mathison a key to the Stoughton yard so that Mathison could drop off water when the test site was closed.
Mathison allegedly texted Cederquist that he was heading to the water company’s warehouse in Bridgewater, writing: “Was heading to Bridgewater seeing if you all need anything on return trip. Did you get a new key for the midnight express?” to which Cederquist replied, “Not yet but I need Voss and Italian toast espresso and some decaf for an old timer at the office.”
Cederquist allegedly accepted additional bribes from other people that included a $750 granite post and mailbox; a new driveway valued at over $10,000; and a snow blower valued at nearly $2,000.
The indictment alleges that Cederquist described one such applicant as “horrible,” and “brain dead,” but gave him a passing score anyway in exchange for the snow blower.
“All CDL recipients identified as not qualified in the course of this investigation have been reported to the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles,” federal prosecutors said while announcing the indictment.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.