A California DMV employee is facing serious prison time after issuing illegitimate commercial driver’s licenses in exchange for over $12,000 in bribes.
The investigation has been underway since 2013. Robert S. Turchin, 68, was convicted on June 26, 2018 and is set to be sentenced September 21, 2018.
He is facing 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit bribery and identity fraud, as well as three counts of identity fraud. During his time working for Salinas Department of Motor Vehicles, Turchin would reportedly issue passing scores to applicants who had never passed the written exam or taken the driving test.
According to The Californian, Turchin had two accomplices: DMV employee Emma Klem and truck driving school owner Mangal Gill. Klem offered to issue the illegal licenses and Gill entered the information into the DMV database.
The two aides were found guilty after law enforcement searched their property, finding lists of license numbers used in accordance with the fake test scores. They also confiscated several envelopes containing $10,000 from Turchin’s vehicle.
Klem and Gill pleaded guilty to counts of conspiracy to commit bribery and identity fraud. They have yet to be sentenced.
At the end of the investigation, 40 false licenses were either cancelled or revoked.
