MINEOLA, NEW YORK — A former New York Department of Motor Vehicles supervisor was sentenced October 28 to one year in jail for orchestrating a scheme in which her sister showed up in disguises, including baggy clothing, face masks, construction jackets, and fake facial hair, to take commercial driver’s license permit exams for other people.
Kanaisha Middleton, 34, pleaded guilty on May 4, 2026, to corrupting the government in the fourth degree, impairing the integrity of a licensing examination, and official misconduct, according to the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office. Officials said she used her position to run “a cheating scheme to bypass CDL exams and process permits for no-show applicants.”
How the Scheme Worked
The case began when a supervisor at the Garden City DMV branch told the New York State Inspector General’s Office that employees were processing CDL permit applications without applicants sitting for the required tests. Applicants must show identification and proof of legal status, and DMV representatives verify their identity against digitized records before sending them to a computer terminal to take the exam.
On several dates between March 2023 and September 2023, Kanaisha Middleton directed her sister, Jamie Middleton, 36, to approach DMV employees in disguise and pose as different permit applicants. Jamie Middleton was let into the testing room each time, even though her appearance did not match the identification and DMV records of the people she was posing as.
Jamie Middleton took nine CDL exams and passed eight times for seven applicants. Six of those applicants were not issued full CDLs.
On May 23, 2023, she took exams for two applicants, Rene Sarduy, a Town of Hempstead Department of Highway employee, and Omesh Mohan, less than five minutes apart, wearing the exact same clothing. Both then went to different DMV locations in the following days to get their interim permits. Neither was issued a full license, and Mohan failed the CDL road test.
James Nurse, a Town of Hempstead Sanitation employee, received an interim permit on August 16, 2023, in Massapequa after Jamie Middleton took his exam two days earlier in Garden City. He was issued a full CDL on September 28, 2023, and used it to drive recycling trucks for the Sanitation Department.
Others Sentenced
- Jamie Middleton: pleaded guilty to corrupting the government in the fourth degree and eight counts of impairing the integrity of a licensing examination. Sentenced July 7, 2026, to five months incarceration and five years’ probation.
- Satoya Mitchell, 35: pleaded guilty to impairing the integrity of a government licensing examination, tampering with public records in the first degree, and official misconduct. Sentenced April 17, 2026, to four years’ probation.
- James Nurse, 43: pleaded guilty to falsifying business records in the second degree. Sentenced May 8, 2026, to three years’ probation.
- Rene Sarduy, 45: pleaded guilty to falsifying business records in the second degree. Sentenced February 26, 2026, to three years’ probation.
- Omesh Mohan, 43: pleaded guilty to falsifying business records in the second degree. Sentenced March 13, 2026, to three years’ probation.
- Tawanna Whitfield, 36: pleaded guilty January 22, 2026. Sentencing is scheduled for November 23, 2026.
Statements
“Kanaisha Middleton used her government position to corrupt and exploit DMV systems and manipulate a process meant to ensure those permitted to drive commercial vehicles on New York State roadways have the knowledge and abilities to do so safely,” said Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly. “She enlisted the help of her sister and several other DMV employees in a masquerade of hairbrained disguises to conceal a half-baked scheme putting money in their pockets and untested drivers on the roads with permits they never earned. We expect public employees to uphold the law, not sell it out for cash and at the expense of New Yorkers’ safety.”
New York State Inspector General Lucy Lang said, “By exploiting her position to help others circumvent critical safety laws, this defendant betrayed the public’s trust and undermined the integrity of the system.”
Information courtesy of the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office.
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