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One witness testified that corrupt screening officers would impose an additional burden on bad drivers while providing them with a full driver's license.
Lovepreet Brar admitted a charge of having deceived the Auckland case and is now a Crown witness.
He testified on Tuesday in the Manukau District Court, where Mohammed Feroz denied 73 counts of fraud and Daryl Pregasen Govender denied 17 counts of indictment.
Brar said that bad drivers would pay between $ 50 and $ 150 more and more for their bribe if they were particularly bad or if their car was defective, for example a faulty brake light.
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* The testing officer asked a colleague to "show restraint" for the applicants
* One witness stated that a driver's license tester had requested a bribe
Additional fees would be required if the applicant did not show up and the corrupt screening officers had to complete the paperwork themselves.
Brar stated that he had been recruited into the program at the end of 2014 while he was working in customer service at the AA Meadowlands branch.
He was sending text messages to his friends and associates to warn them when corrupt check officers would be available.
Brar acted as an intermediary – taking money from plaintiffs in cash and deposits into his bank account.
A full driver's license costs around $ 300, but a heavy truck license can cost up to $ 2,500.
Brar said that Feroz sometimes asked him to tell the truck driver's license to go to the AA office in a vest to give the impression that they were legitimate truck drivers.
"Because it's a truck license, they said it was a big risk to them and that they were passing the person without the person even coming to the exam .. and they simply charge more. "
Additional fees would also be charged if the applicant did not show up for the test.
Brar added that the testing officers sometimes filled out the documents, including the applicants' signatures in the staff washroom.
Crown Attorney David Stevens explained to Brar various transactions that showed that money was deposited in the Brar bank account shortly before the test and that additional payments were sometimes made thereafter.
In some cases, transactions were not even disguised in bank records, but simply called "car money".
One of the transactions involved a person who was living with a cousin of Brar & # 39; s in Wellington. The applicant does not have to leave his home in the capital, but has obtained a driver's license.
Brar said that Feroz was flexible in his prices, charging his friends barely $ 200, but Govender was different.
"Govender never does it for free or with less money." Feroz has sometimes done it for less but Govender is pretty strict, he says: "The rule is the rule, you have to pay so much."
He also testified of the cut that he was going to undergo.
"Daryl [Govender] always want me to keep 50 or 100 dollars. With Feroz, everything was fine. Sometimes he gives me more or less. Govender was pretty strict, he said: "Bro, I pass the customer, you keep your $ 50." "
Previously, Brar had explained to the court how he had been recruited as part of the operation.
He stated that he was working at the AA Meadowlands branch as a customer service representative in 2014 when a friend told him what was going on.
He said: "Bro, you know you can get a license here for $ 80?"
His friend identified Feroz as the man behind the scheme, said Brar. Feroz worked at the same AA branch as a driving agent.
Brar said that he had told his friend "my brother, it's wrong".
He approached Feroz shortly thereafter and the two men met in a food court at the mall to discuss.
"He explained that he had been doing it for a while."
Brar stated that Feroz had told him that he had been caught once and that NZTA had investigated but that nothing had happened.
"He said if you bring your [Punjabi] the people of the community, we will pass them. "
Brar stated that Feroz had offered him one-third of the bribe payment for each applicant that he had introduced into the system and had given an example where the bribe would cost $ 300 and he would receive $ 100. dollars.
Brar also recalled that Feroz had approached him, telling him that he had "good news" and that Govender had joined the ploy.
Shortly after, the three men met in Feroz's van, parked at the back of the AA branch. Govender convinced them to raise their prices.
The group would communicate over the phone with applications – Viber and Whatsapp – to avoid getting caught, he said.
Brar said that he often left money for Feroz under a cup in the faculty room, but Govender was much more cautious.
He said that he sometimes gave his cup to Govender in the staff restroom but often went to his house at night south of Auckland to hand over the money himself.
According to the Crown, bribes for driver's licenses typically amounted to $ 350, but more was asked if the applicant did not want to sit for the exam or if he wanted a heavy vehicle license.
Most applicants had failed at least once, but in some cases they had failed five times.
Applicants often lived far from the AA Meadowlands branch and took their tests earlier to increase their chances of obtaining a corrupted test agent.
The trial before Judge Mina Wharepouri is in its second week.
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