Ex-Trooper Pleads Guilty to Accepting Bribes From Trucking Company for Favorable Inspections
A former Texas Department of Public Safety sergeant has pleaded guilty to corruption charges in federal court for accepting bribes from the owner of a Dallas trucking company for favors related to the inspection of his fleet, court records show.
Kevin Gerard Cauley was a commercial vehicle enforcement officer for DPS who conducted safety inspections of large trucks, court records show.
Cauley, 50, of Royse City accepted at least $20,000 in bribes from the business owner for inspection decals he issued for more than three-dozen trucks, according to court documents.
Cauley could not be reached for comment, and his attorney did not respond to requests for an interview.
Cauley indicated in reports that he inspected some of the trucks with another trooper when he actually inspected them alone, court records show. He also claimed in reports that some of the inspections were done roadside when they actually occurred at one of the trucking businesses, according to court records.
Court records did not name the two trucking companies involved but they included the addresses. Both businesses are on the 4000 block of Duncanville Road. The owner was mentioned by his initials, O.C. He has not been charged with a crime, according to available records.
The owner did not return a call seeking comment.
Cauley was charged with honest services wire fraud in April. He pleaded guilty to the charge on June 13, court records show. He is not in custody. A sentencing date has not yet be set.
The charging document says an unidentified trooper, referred to as R.B., took part in the scheme. It’s unclear whether the trooper is a witness or a future defendant in the case.
“Cauley owed a duty of honest and faithful services to the state of Texas and its citizens,” the charging document said.
The U.S. attorney’s office in Dallas said in court documents that Cauley took payments from the company owner “in exchange for favorable official action” through “corrupt means.”
The scheme took place from July 2014 to September 2015, prosecutors said.
The U.S. attorney’s office could not be reached for comment.
DPS officials also could not be reached for comment. The agency did not immediately provide information about Cauley’s work history at the state agency in response to a public information request.
Cauley claimed to have performed the highest level of inspections — known as Level 1 — on the trucks, which must be performed by two troopers, records show.
Decals are given to trucks that pass the Level 1 inspection. The stickers notify authorities across the United States as well as in Mexico and Canada that the truck passed an inspection, reducing the chances of the truck receiving safety violations, prosecutors said.
Commercial vehicle companies with fewer violations receive higher safety ratings, which reduce their insurance premiums, court documents said.
