A trucking company owner is facing serious federal charges for allegedly lying to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) in an attempt to conceal a negative safety rating.
Thirty-nine year old Rochester, New York resident Tony Kirik, a.k.a. Anatoliy Kirik, has been charged with making false statements to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, and conspiring to do the same, according to a November 25 news release from U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr.
According to the criminal complaint, “the defendant owned and controlled a trucking business called Dallas Logistics. The company was put in the name of a nominee owner to conceal the fact that it was affiliated with another trucking company, Orange Transportation, that Kirik also controlled. Orange Transportation had received a negative rating from the Department of Transportation, and that negative rating would have been applied to Dallas Logistics had the true relationship between the two entities been disclosed to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. In order to prevent the government from learning that the two entities were related and affiliated, Kirik directed his employees to create and present false documents and representations to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.”
If convicted Kirik faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
This article originally appeared on CDL Life