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Angelo Carrion, 68, of West Lampeter Township, admitted to accepting bribes and tampering with public records while working as a Driver License Examiner Assistant at PennDOT centers in East Hempfield and East Lampeter townships between April 2021 and May 2022, according to the DA’s office.
Carrion was sentenced to seven years of probation with restrictive conditions by Judge Jeffrey Conrad on Tuesday, Dec. 19. His sentence includes two days in Lancaster County Prison, nine months of house arrest with electronic monitoring, and two months of intensive supervision. Carrion also paid $5,011 in restitution to his victims before entering his guilty plea.
He is permanently barred from holding any government position or public office in Pennsylvania.
Carrion pleaded guilty to 17 counts of bribery, one count of theft by deception, one count of criminal use of a communication facility, and 51 counts of tampering with public records, authorities said.
Carrion used his position to improperly assist PennDOT applicants by providing answers to the Driver’s License Knowledge Test, often in exchange for payments ranging from $20 to $350, investigators found. Some applicants told police Carrion had them intentionally fail the computerized test so he could administer a private paper test with answers provided. Carrion also omitted required data and approved incomplete applications in exchange for cash, police said.
"Carrion specifically targeted Spanish-speaking applicants, many of whom were immigrants, referring to himself as the 'Angel of Lancaster,'" prosecutors said. His actions resulted in irregularities in at least 268 license or identification card transactions, impacting hundreds of PennDOT customers, authorities detailed and Daily Voice previously reported.
The state police investigation revealed that Carrion "coerced" 35 victims into paying cash for his assistance, with payments ranging from $20 to $250. These applicants were taken into private rooms and given paper tests instead of the standard computerized tests, in violation of PennDOT policy. Carrion also allegedly instructed applicants to fail the computerized test intentionally so he could administer the paper version privately.
Most of the applicants, who lacked proper verification of their immigration or citizenship status at the time, were later found to be in the U.S. legally and eligible to apply for driver’s licenses. However, many failed the retesting process after the fraudulent licenses were recalled, police said.
Carrion worked at two driver’s license centers in Lancaster County: the Regency Square center in East Hempfield Township and the Lancaster East center in East Lampeter Township. He resigned in April 2022 after PennDOT’s Risk Management office uncovered irregularities in transactions he processed between October 2021 and March 2022.
Carrion was originally charged with 36 felonies, including 17 counts of bribery in official matters, one count each of theft by deception and criminal use of a communication facility, and 17 counts of tampering with public records, as well as 35 misdemeanor counts of tampering with public records, according to police and court records. He was arraigned and released on $75,000 unsecured bail before his preliminary hearing in January 2023. The charges were resolved with his guilty plea and sentencing in December 2024.
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