DMV Supervisor Charged in License Fraud Scheme
A DMV supervisor from Long Island has been charged with defrauding the system by allowing unqualified truck driver applicants to take the commercial license exam while pretending to be her sister, as announced by prosecutors on Thursday.
Kanaisha Middleton, 33, worked at the Department of Transportation and allegedly ran the cash-for-license scheme for over six months. She employed her sister, Jamie Middleton, 35, to take commercial driving tests under a disguise, which included a fake beard and various costumes. This situation was disclosed by the Nassau State Attorney’s Office.
District Attorney Anne Donnelly remarked, “She comes in disguise, wearing different clothes, a fake mustache, beard, glasses, even a mask and a gong. She looks like a spy in a spy thriller.”
Donnelly also noted, “All of these disguises were meant to sell the plan on camera. [The real applicants] never set foot in the Garden City DMV and never clicked a single button to take the required test.” She added, “Cheaters never win.”
The Middletons supposedly enlisted two additional DMV staff members, Tawana Whitfield, 36, and Satya Mitchell, 35, to help execute the fraudulent operation, charging applicants up to $3,000 for each license exam.
Fortunately, the real candidates could not skip the road test needed for a commercial driver’s license, and only one of the nine who “paid” managed to obtain a driver’s license.
Donnelly expressed concerns about the safety of untrained drivers saying, “We’re talking about drivers who don’t know the rules of the road and have never overtaken on the road before. They could potentially be sitting behind the wheel of a 20,000-pound tractor-trailer. This plan truly posed a real danger.”
All four individuals face charges of government corruption, violating the integrity of government licensing exams, and other related offenses, with potential jail time of up to seven years if found guilty.
Additionally, the indictment, consisting of 51 counts, names other individuals involved in the scheme.
It was reported that three applicants—James Nurse, 42, Omesh Mohan, 42, and Rene Sarduy, 44—were also charged with related offenses. Notably, Nurse was the only one to pass the road test and utilized his license to drive a recycling truck, while Mohan, who fared poorly on the road test, had a prior conviction for vehicular assault.
Authorities are still on the lookout for other participants in the scam, which reportedly began in March 2023 and lasted at least six months. According to the District Attorney’s office, Kanaisha Middleton’s sister managed to pass all but one of the in-person exams she took while being disguised as a legitimate applicant.
The organized group charged between $1,500 and $3,000 for nine commercial license exams and one passenger license exam.
The scheme was uncovered when a vigilant DMV employee recognized that the “man” taking the test was, in fact, a woman in disguise. This tip led to the involvement of the state Office of the Inspector General, which alerted the District Attorney.
Kanaisha Middleton faced court on Wednesday for her arraignment, and the other alleged co-conspirators were arrested in the days that followed.
New York State Inspector General Lucy Lang emphasized the seriousness of the offenses, stating, “He sold not only the safety of his fellow New Yorkers but also his oath of office. Bypassing that safety device is a dangerous threat to public safety. Families, commuters, and pedestrians across the state depend on the integrity of the permitting process.”
