Posted on 03/21/2008 10:40:41 AM PDT by AuntB
On the same day that the owner of a Stratford driver training school was charged with forging documents to help illegal immigrants obtain driver's licenses, state police searched another driving school in Waterbury.
Law enforcement sources said state police detectives executed a search warrant Thursday morning at Classic Driving School on Fairfield Avenue in Waterbury as part of what appears to be a burgeoning investigation into suspected license fraud involving undocumented immigrants.
Henry Kruszewski, 57, of Milford turned himself in at state police Troop G in Bridgeport on charges of racketeering and forgery. He is charged with producing phony documents at his Express Driving School to help undocumented immigrants obtain Connecticut driver's licenses. Kruszewski was released after posting a $500,000 bond and is scheduled to appear in Bridgeport Superior Court on April 3.
State police would not confirm Thursday whether the Waterbury search was related to the investigation into Kruszewski. Efforts to reach Fernando Dias, listed as the owner of Classic Driving School by the Department of Motor Vehicles, were unsuccessful Thursday.
State police detectives, DMV inspectors and federal investigators from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency searched Kruszewski's Milford home and the offices of Express Driving School in January.
At his home they found pre-stamped, blank immigration documents; immigration stamps; and blank, pre-stamped and sealed Polish birth certificates, according to DMV documents.
At the offices they found blank or partially completed immigration documents, Social Security documents, more immigration stamps and more original Polish birth certificates.
DMV officials revoked Kruszewski's personal business license and the school's license in February after Kruszewski failed to appear for a hearing on allegations he had fraudulently assisted undocumented immigrants obtain drivers' licenses.
The licenses were obtained from the DMV offices in either Bridgeport or Danbury, a source said. A source said investigators suspect Kruszewski had started off helping Polish immigrants obtain licenses, but branched out to assisting others, including the Brazilian population in Danbury.
The investigation started in August of 2007 when DMV officials received an anonymous tip that two undocumented immigrants from New Jersey had obtained Connecticut driver's licenses through Express Driving School.
When DMV inspectors started reviewing the paperwork of others who had obtained driver's licenses through Kruszewski's school they found about 70 other questionable licenses and turned the case over to the state police.
The DMV licenses several private driving schools to help first-time drivers get training before applying for a license or to retrain drivers.
DMV Commissioner Robert Ward has said it is common for people who have difficulty speaking English to go to private driving schools to assist them with the process. When people without licenses go to the school they are required to produce valid identification such as a Social Security card, birth certificate or passport, along with a recently dated, postmarked piece of mail with their address on it.
Immigrants seeking licenses must produce documents from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services indicating their status in the country. The DMV requires documentation showing they are temporary residents or resident aliens or are employed. Foreign students must produce paperwork showing they are enrolled in a school.
Polish, huh. So I guess there’s a lot of Pablo Pulaskis and Yareslav de la Hoyas driving around in CT.
}:-)4
Ain't that that new boxing promoter from Guadalajara?
Posted a 500,000 bond eh? I know 10% is all that is required but the collateral must be nice.
Bttt!
Just guessing but I’d imagine relatives that are US citizens put up his bail.
You’re probably correct. My implication of course was this person has made alot of money in this trade and the court is keenly aware of it.
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