Former Texas D.P.S. Employee Pleads Guilty to Fraudulent Drivers License Scheme

U.S. Attorney’s Office
Western District of Texas
31 March 2016

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

In San Antonio, 54-year-old Jose A. Ytuarte, a former Texas Department of Public Safety Customer Service Representative in Hondo, TX, pleaded guilty to his role in a scheme to provide fraudulent drivers’ licenses to undocumented aliens announced United States Attorney Richard L. Durbin, Jr., and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs, San Antonio Division.

Appearing before United States District Judge Xavier Rodriguez, Ytuarte pleaded guilty to one count of use of interstate facility in aid of unlawful activity--bribery. By pleading guilty, Ytuarte admitted that from May 2013 to July 2015, he accepted cash bribes from a co-conspirator in exchange for inputting materially fraudulent information, namely that the individual was born in the United States, into the DPS computer system in order to process and issue a driver’s license to an undocumented alien.

Ytuarte’s co-defendant, 44-year-old Azeez Mistry of San Antonio, is charged in the conspiracy count. He is also charged with one count of transfer of false identification documents and four counts of use of an interstate communication facility in aid of unlawful activity. According to the indictment, Mistry would direct undocumented and documented aliens who could not get a driver’s license legally to Ytuarte. Mistry would charge between $1,000 and $5,000 for each license and then pay a portion of that fee to Ytuarte as a cash bribe.

Ytuarte, who faces up to five years in federal prison, remains on bond pending sentencing scheduled for July 13, 2016. Mistry, who is also currently on bond, is scheduled for jury selection and trial on May 2, 2016. Upon conviction, he faces up to 15 years in federal prison.

This case was investigated by the FBI, Texas Rangers and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Assistant United States Attorney Christina Playton is prosecuting this case on behalf of the Government.

An indictment is merely a charge and should not be considered as evidence of guilt. Mistry is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.