Two Miami-Dade County Water and Sewer Department employees and a Miami-Dade County Tax Collector employee have been arrested on felony charges stemming from an alleged scheme to bypass examinations required to obtain Commercial Driver Licenses.
The arrests resulted from a joint investigation involving the Miami-Dade County Tax Collector’s Office, the Miami-Dade County Office of the Inspector General, the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office, and the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office.
According to the Inspector General, Water and Sewer employees Matthew Howard, Jr. and Keith Garrod Jones failed to pass required CDL knowledge and skills examinations and then paid Tax Collector employee Vanessa Erika Roberts to bypass those requirements.
Investigators allege Roberts falsely processed the applications in the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles’ system as qualifying out-of-state CDL transfers. This process, commonly called reciprocity, recognizes valid credentials issued by another state and can waive otherwise required testing. Investigators allege neither employee qualified for that treatment.
Howard and Jones are each charged with Official Misconduct, a third-degree felony, and Unlawful Compensation or Reward for Official Behavior, a second-degree felony. Roberts is charged with two counts of each offense. Roberts is no longer employed by the Tax Collector’s Office.
“When I took office, I made clear that protecting the integrity of this office and restoring public trust would be a priority,” said Tax Collector Dariel Fernandez. “When wrongdoing is uncovered, we act. Anyone who abuses public authority for personal gain must be held accountable.”
“A Commercial Driver License must certify that the person behind the wheel has satisfied the requirements to operate large commercial vehicles safely,” Fernandez continued. “Bypassing those safeguards undermines the licensing process and puts everyone on our roads at risk.”
Fernandez thanked Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz, State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle, Inspector General Felix Jimenez, and their teams for their work on the investigation.
The Tax Collector’s Office is reviewing related transactions and records and will take any additional administrative or corrective action warranted by its findings.
This remains an active investigation. The charges are allegations, and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
