Summary

On June 1, 2011, James H. Wood, former Supervisory Highway Safety Specialist, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), Buffalo, New York, pled guilty in U.S. District Court, Buffalo, New York to an Information charging him with bribery. 

The investigation disclosed that Mr. Wood requested and accepted payments from Canadian safety consultants to postpone safety audits of Canadian trucking companies; to provide satisfactory ratings to Canadian trucking companies; and to provide internal FMCSA information, including lists of scheduled safety audits, to Canadian trucking safety consultants.

Subsequent to his arrest, FMCSA terminated Mr. Wood's employment.   Sentencing is scheduled for October 19, 2011.  This investigation was conducted jointly with the FBI.