Guilty plea in Georgia chameleon carrier case

A Georgia man has pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court in Macon, Ga., to conspiracy to violate a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration imminent hazard out-of-service order, the U.S. Department of Transportation Inspector General reported.  Corey Daniels was among several men indicted in May 2013 for helping Devasko Lewis operate new carriers, Eagle Transport and Eagle Trans, after Lewis had been barred from being involved in the operation of a trucking company.

In October 2008, FMCSA ordered Lewis, doing business as Lewis Trucking Company, to cease all operations due to serious violations discovered during a FMCSA compliance review conducted after a fatal crash in Alabama that killed seven. He later formed another company, DDL Transport LLC, which also was shut down under an imminent hazard order. In May 2012, Lewis pleaded guilty to violating the orders and was later sentenced to six months in prison and 12 months supervised release.

During his supervised release Lewis was prohibited from being involved in the operation of any trucking company, but he obtained DOT numbers for Eagle Transport and Eagle Trans using the identity of friends, including Daniels, and failed to reveal to FMCSA his involvement as owner-operator of the companies. Daniels and two others helped Lewis continue operating Eagle Trans after he reported to federal prison in November 2012.