A Boston man has been sentenced to prison for his involvement in a bribery scheme related to the Massachusetts State Police’s Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) Unit. Eric Mathison, 48, received a sentence of one year and one day in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. The sentencing was handed down by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani. Prosecutors had recommended a two-year prison term.
Mathison was charged in January 2024 as part of a 74-count indictment that included five others, among them former MSP Sergeant Gary Cederquist and other ex-troopers from the CDL Unit led by Cederquist. Mathison pleaded guilty in March 2025. Cederquist was convicted by a jury in May and is awaiting sentencing.
According to court documents, Mathison worked for a water company whose drivers required CDLs for their delivery vehicles. In exchange for bribes consisting of free inventory such as bottled water, tea products, energy drinks, and candy delivered to an office trailer at the CDL test site in Stoughton, Massachusetts, Cederquist provided passing scores to several applicants who either failed or only partially completed their skills tests.
Mathison admitted to communicating with Cederquist about specific applicants’ performances and fulfilling requests for items from the water company’s inventory. Text messages between the two revealed discussions about applicants’ failures and requests for more goods. For example, after describing one applicant as “an idiot” who “should have failed about 10 times already,” Cederquist still gave that person a passing score. On another occasion, when Mathison asked about supplies at the trailer, Cederquist replied he was “in desperate need of restocking,” specifying premium bottled water and other beverages.
“United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England; and Brian C. Gallagher, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General, Northeast Region made the announcement today.”
“Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christine Wichers and Adam W. Deitch of the Public Corruption & Special Prosecutions Unit prosecuted the case.”
