An indictment was unsealed last week in Houston charging a Texas man with offenses related to the alleged operation of illegal and unsafe trucking companies.
According to court documents, Shaquan Jelks, 48, of Houston, managed and controlled multiple commercial trucking companies after being ordered not to do so by a federal court and by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
The indictment against Jelks alleges that he repeatedly lied to and obstructed the FMCSA, including after a driver for his companies was killed in a single-vehicle crash in February of 2022.
The indictment also alleges that Jelks relied on fraud to finance his illegal trucking companies, including by diverting to his trucking companies money fraudulently obtained from the Covid-era Paycheck Protection Program.
“Individuals who impair, impede, or obstruct the lawful functions of the FMCSA make our roads and highways less safe,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department will continue to work closely with the Department of Transportation and our law enforcement partners to protect drivers on our roads and highways.”
The Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are investigating the case.
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