Perry Mendes, CDL Test Score Falsification, Massachusetts 2025

BOSTON – In a shocking case of corruption within the Massachusetts State Police, former trooper Perry Mendes was sentenced to one month in prison for his role in a conspiracy to falsify records by giving passing scores to certain Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) applicants.

Perry Mendes, 64, of Wareham, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani to one month in prison, to be followed by one year of supervised release with the first two months on home confinement. The government recommended a sentence of one year in prison and a fine of $5,500.

In July 2025, Mendes pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to falsify records, three counts of falsifying records, and two counts of making false statements. He was initially charged in January 2024 alongside five others in a 74-count indictment.

The scheme, which took place between January 2019 and April 2022, involved Mendes and other members of the Massachusetts State Police’s CDL Unit giving automatic passing scores to at least 17 CDL applicants, regardless of whether they actually passed the test. The code word “golden handshake” or “golden,” for short, was used to identify applicants who received special treatment.

Mendes admitted to cutting skills tests short for “golden” applicants, entering false information on CDL score sheets, and reporting passing scores for one applicant who never took the skills test.

U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley, Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England, and Brian C. Gallagher, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General, Northeast Region, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christine J. Wichers and Adam W. Deitch of the Public Corruption & Special Prosecutions Unit are prosecuting the case.

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