2 people charged in bribery scheme at Brockton RMV
BROCKTON - Two people including a former Brockton Registry of Motor Vehicles manager and a driving school owner have pled guilty to schemes to help drivers obtain fraudulent licenses at the Brockton RMV.
Mia Cox-Johnson, 41, was charged with two counts of extortion under color of official right and one count of conspiring to commit extortion. Estevao Semedo, 61, was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit honest services mail fraud. Plea hearings have not yet been scheduled by the court.
Cox-Johnson, the former manager, took money in exchange for giving passing scores on learner's permit tests for passenger and commercial vehicles. It is alleged that between December 2018 and October 2019 she took the bribes and told applicants to take a paper test instead of computerized learners permit tests so they could be doctored more easily.
On December 28, 2018, she allegedly accepted $1,000 in cash, to help an individual get a passing grade on a learners permit test who had failed it six different times. She is also accused of accepting $200 in cash to score another individual as having passed the test when they didn't.
Semedo, the driving school owner, conspired to defraud the RMV into issuing driver's licenses to applicants who did not pass the road test. He paid road test examiners at the Brockton RMV service center to misrepresent to the RMV that certain applicants had passed their road test when they had not. As a result of the fraud, the RMV mailed driver's licenses to unqualified applicants.
Customers at the service center say it's not only unethical but dangerous. "They broke the code of ethics, it's not right for other people's safety," said Olga Mercado.
"It makes it very dangerous to have people driving on the road without the proper knowledge," said Amir Konforty.
Governor Maura Healey says every state agency needs to be held accountable. "They've been terminated, that's what we need is integrity in the system. The public needs to rely on that and I'm glad swift action was taken," said Healey.
In a statement MassDOT said, "We are pleased to see these individuals held accountable after the RMV uncovered the fraud, terminated the employees involved, and referred the matter to law enforcement for further investigation. The RMV has since taken steps to improve its licensing process and continues to closely monitor and audit transactions."
