(Serhii Shleihel/Getty Images)
February 13, 2026 11:46 AM, EST
Key Takeaways:
- Federal cases in Massachusetts and Wisconsin detailed schemes where applicants used hidden Bluetooth devices to receive CDL test answers in exchange for thousands of dollars.
- Prosecutors said the scams let unqualified drivers obtain commercial permits and licenses, exploiting assisted listening allowances and involving coordinated conspirators who shared client fees.
- Frank Castro, 52, awaits sentencing in Massachusetts, while the Wisconsin case against Jaspreet Singh was dismissed after he entered ICE custody and chose to leave the country.
U.S. prosecutors are going after apparent test cheaters who use Bluetooth listening devices to hear answers given by fraudsters during commercial driver license exams in exchange for money.
Two recent federal court cases in Massachusetts and Wisconsin underscore government efforts to combat an apparent uptick in high-tech listening device schemes in which unqualified commercial motor vehicle drivers pay to receive legitimate state CDLs and commercial learner’s permits.
Massachusetts
A federal court in Boston convicted Frank Castro, 52, on Jan. 14 for engaging in a scheme in which an undercover agent test taker received exam answers via a Bluetooth device. That resulted in the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles issuing a CLP, a prerequisite to a CDL.
Castro was convicted of unlawful production of an identification document, according to the U.S. attorney’s office in the District of Massachusetts. He is expected to be sentenced in May for his actions, which started in October 2021 when he told an undercover agent about helping to obtain a CLP for $3,000.
Castro told the undercover agent to sneak a Bluetooth device into an RMV testing area, “surreptitiously place the device into his ear, then cover it with headphones used during the exam,” the attorney general noted. Then the undercover agent would connect with Castro via the Bluetooth device so “Castro could hear the audio questions and provide the undercover agent with the correct answers.”
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On Dec. 22, 2021, the agent deposited $3,000 into Castro’s bank account and then took the CLP exam while connected via the Bluetooth device to Castro, who conveyed test answers in real time.
“The undercover agent passed the exam with Castro’s unlawful assistance and received a Massachusetts CLP. The charge of unlawful production of an identification document provides for a sentence of up to 15 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine,” the attorney general’s office stated.
The government’s list of exhibits included audio of phone calls, text messages and recorded meetings between Castro and the agent as well as a CLP issued to the agent, a Bluetooth device and bank information.
Among the many federal officials assisting with the investigation and prosecution were the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General.
Wisconsin
A criminal complaint was lodged against Jaspreet Singh for allegedly recruiting potential customers to pay to fraudulently obtain CDLs without having to study for the knowledge exam and demonstrate driving skills.
The case against Singh began Oct. 16 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin with the complaint by John Modransky, special agent with the DOT’s Office of Inspector General.
From June-December 2024, Singh allegedly was part of a CDL scheme in Milwaukee that involved giving test answers to applicants using Bluetooth devices hidden in turbans and earphones.
Wisconsin CDL-Bluetooth Arrest Warrant
For a fee, clients allegedly cheated on the knowledge exam to obtain a CLP and then others helped them pass the driving part of the exam without having to demonstrate needed skills.
“Each member of the conspiracy would receive a portion of the fee paid by the client or customer,” the 15-page U.S. government complaint stated.
Part of the cheating involved having “clients wear a turban concealing Bluetooth in-ear headphones, which played the test questions through over-ear headphones worn on top of the clients’ turbans,” the U.S. government alleged.
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A person on the end supposedly listened remotely to the questions and gave the alleged clients the answers.
This purported criminal enterprise took advantage of the Wisconsin Department of Motor Vehicles allowance of assisted listening devices for CLP testers having a limited understanding of English.
“After passing the knowledge portion of the exam through fraudulent means, J .Singh [allegedly] would then arrange for the clients to pass the driving portion of the exam as well. It is unknown precisely how J. Singh would assist clients in passing the driving portion of the exam to obtain their CDL,” the complaint noted.
FBI and DOT Office of Inspector General agents conducted the investigation, which included taking video surveillance of alleged customers taking exams while wearing turbans and head covers that apparently concealed Bluetooth in-ear headphones in the ruse.
The complaint noted the involvement of a confidential informant who reportedly “worked with other conspirators to help numerous paid customers obtain their CDLs through fraudulent means.”
Purported participants in the scheme discussed charging $2,000 to obtain a CLP but allegedly gave a $200 discount.
The criminal complaint included photos taken by undercover investigators of alleged cheaters wearing the listening devices while taking the knowledge parts of the tests.
On Nov. 24, the U.S. government received court approval to dismiss its case against Singh since he was in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and voluntarily asked to leave the country, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
