Man Pleads Guilty To Paying Bribes for Freight Business
A former driver for a national trucking company pleaded guilty last week to charges, admitting he bribed employees in the Traffic Office at the Marine Corps Logistics Base in Albany, Georgia in order to obtain lucrative freight hauling business for a period of six years.
by Staff
October 14, 2014
2 min to read
A former driver for a national trucking company pleaded guilty last week to charges, admitting he bribed employees in the Traffic Office at the Marine Corps Logistics Base in Albany, Georgia in order to obtain lucrative freight hauling business.
David R. Nelson of Lucedale, Mississippi, pleaded guilty before a federal judge in the Middle District of Georgia to one count of bribery of a public official, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Ad Loading...
During his guilty plea, Nelson, a former driver for an unidentified large transportation company based in Louisville, Kentucky, admitted to paying more than $100,000 in bribes between 2006 and 2012 to officials in the Traffic Office at MCLB in Albany, Georgia in exchange for obtaining freight shipments from the base to destinations on the West Coast.
The bribes started at $500 for each shipment, but later grew to as much as $1,500 per shipment. From the money he made from these freight shipments, Nelson purchased a $50,000 specially-modified trailer that allowed him to carry multiple “protected security service” loads, such as weapons, on a single trip.
As part of his plea agreement with the United States, Nelson agreed to forfeit the proceeds he received as a result of the bribery scheme, as well as to pay full restitution to the Department of Defense.
The two military employees also implicated in the scheme have also entered guilty pleas on the bribery charges.
Sentencing for Nelson will be scheduled at a later date.
Listen as transportation attorney and TruckSafe Consulting President Brandon Wiseman joins the HDT Talks Trucking podcast to unpack the “regulatory turbulence” of last year and what it means for trucking fleets in 2026.
Safety, uptime, and insurance costs directly impact profitability. This eBook looks at how fleet software is evolving to deliver real ROI through proactive maintenance, AI-powered video telematics, and real-time driver coaching. Learn how fleets are reducing crashes, defending claims, and using integrated data to make smarter operational decisions.
Fleet software is getting more sophisticated and effective than ever, tying big data models together to transform maintenance, safety, and the value of your existing tech stack. Fleet technology upgrades are undoubtedly an investment, but updated technology can offer a much higher return. Read how upgrading your fleet technology can increase the return on your investment.
The Federal Highway Administration is asking motor carriers and truck drivers to give input on where and when drivers have difficulty finding truck parking, and on how drivers prefer to get information on available parking.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration continues a crackdown on an increasing number of states it says have been issuing non-domiciled CDLs improperly.
The Department of Transportation and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration took several actions in 2025 to tighten enforcement of regulations for commercial drivers. Will those affect trucking capacity in 2026?
Lisa Kelly talks to HDT about the return of the show Ice Road Truckers, what really happens on the ice roads, how reality TV shapes drivers’ stories, and the career she’s built beyond the show.