Maryland Man Pleads Guilty to Paying Bribe as Part of Conspiracy to Obtain Facially Valid but Fraudulent District Driver’s Licenses for Foreign Nationals
Investigation Has Led to Five Felony Bribery Convictions and 27 Misdemeanor Fraud Convictions of the License Purchasers

WASHINGTON—A 47-year-old Maryland man, Carlos Berrios, pled guilty today to paying a bribe to a former employee of the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) in exchange for facially valid but fraudulently obtained District of Columbia driver’s licenses for foreign nationals, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., Shawn Henry, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and D.C. Inspector General Charles Willoughby. Berrios is scheduled to be sentenced on July 2, 2010, and could face up to 18 months in prison under the federal sentencing guidelines as a result of the guilty plea.

Berrios pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia before the Honorable Richard J. Leon to a one-count information charging payment of a bribe to a public official. In pleading guilty, Berrios admitted that on July 14, 2006, he arranged for a relative of his to pay then-DMV employee Patricia Gonzalez (Gonzalez) $1,500 to obtain a District of Columbia driver’s license even though the relative did not reside in the District of Columbia. Berrios had learned from an acquaintance of his that Gonzalez, in exchange for money, would issue facially valid driver’s licenses to individuals who were ineligible to obtain such licenses.

On February 6, 2007, Berrios arranged for a second relative of his to pay Gonzalez $1,500 to obtain a facially valid D.C. driver’s license that falsely bore a D.C. address. Two days later, Gonzalez met up with Berrios and paid him $200. Thereafter, Berrios began referring other foreign nationals to Gonzalez so that they could obtain facially valid driver’s licenses from the DMV. Most of these individuals were not eligible to obtain such driver’s licenses because they did not reside in the District of Columbia or were not legally present within the U.S. Further, many of these individuals were unable to read in either English or Spanish and, therefore, were unable to pass the knowledge and road skills tests. These individuals paid Gonzalez, either directly or through Berrios, an average of $1,500 for every fraudulent license Gonzalez issued.

Berrios received payments of $200 from Gonzalez for some of the foreign nationals whom he referred to her. In total, Berrios facilitated the procurement of at least six (6) fraudulent driver’s licenses from Gonzalez and paid or caused others to pay Gonzalez in excess of $5,000.

Previously, on May 19, 2008, Gonzalez entered a guilty plea to a one-count information, charging her with receipt of a bribe by a public official. During the plea proceeding, Gonzalez admitted that she issued approximately 200 fraudulent driver’s licenses. On August 14, 2008, Gonzalez was sentenced to 18 months in prison for her role in the bribery scheme. Three other individuals have also pled guilty to the felony charge of bribing a public official in connection with this investigation. Additionally, 27 individuals who obtained fraudulent driver’s licenses have each pled guilty to a local D.C. charge of misdemeanor fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 180 days in prison and a fine of $1,000. Most of these individuals have been sentenced and received a suspended prison sentence and a 12- to 36-month period of probation. Some are awaiting sentencing.

In announcing today’s guilty plea, U.S. Attorney Machen, FBI Assistant Director in Charge Henry, and D.C. Inspector General Willoughby commended the investigatory work of FBI special agents of the Washington Field Office and D.C. OIG special agents. They also praised Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ellen Chubin Epstein and Susan B. Menzer, who are prosecuting the cases.