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Ohio Seeks Charges Against Trucker Accused of Toll Evasion
Indictment Includes Vehicle Forfeiture Provision for Truck
Key Takeaways:
- An Illinois trucker was indicted April 21 in Ohio on a fourth-degree felony grand theft charge tied to nearly $22,000 in unpaid turnpike tolls.
- Prosecutors allege the truck was tracked for nearly two years using open-road tolling technology and that multiple payment notices were ignored.
- The indictment seeks forfeiture of the drive's truck.
An Illinois trucker has been indicted for grand theft in Ohio for allegedly failing to pay nearly $22,000 in turnpike tolls in a criminal case that includes seizing his Freightliner vehicle.
Moath Musamih, of Chicago suburb Orland Park, was indicted April 21 by a grand jury in Williams County, Ohio.
He was charged with grand theft — a fourth-degree felony for theft of services/property ranging from $7,000 to $150,000. A conviction carries a penalty of up to 18 months in prison, a $5,000 fine and restitution to the victim.
The criminal case arose April 1 after an Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper contacted the Williams County Prosecutor’s Office in Bryan, Ohio.
According to county Chief Investigator Andrew Skiles, the trooper told prosecutors, “We’ve been watching him for a long time [for unpaid tolls]. What should we do?”
Musamih is described as an owner-operator, who reportedly drove the truck that is apparently registered under his wife’s name, Skiles said.
The trucker’s vehicle had been electronically observed via an E-ZPass transponder for nearly two years as it traveled along the Ohio Turnpike going for long distances across the state, stopping and exiting along off-ramps, Skiles added.
That day it stopped at the Tiffin River Service Plaza near the Michigan state line. The trooper was instructed to make contact with the driver while prosecutors decided at a later date if the state of Ohio would pursue either a civil action or criminal case against the trucker.
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An aerial view of Tiffin River Service Plaza, where Moath Musamih was approached by an Ohio State Highway Patrol officer. (Ohio Turnpike Commission)
Toll evasion is illegal in Ohio. State law prohibits anyone from intentionally avoiding Ohio Turnpike tolls or defrauding the Turnpike Commission. Violators can be cited by the commission, fined a $100 civil penalty separate from paying the owed tolls or face criminal charges.
Sgt. Ryan Purpura, Ohio State Highway Patrol spokesman, said the trooper located Musamih at the turnpike service plaza along eastbound Interstate 80. An incident report for “Theft by Deception” was filed. It alleged the suspect had “engaged in theft activity over the course of multiple years while using the victim’s toll road.” Two offenses listed in the report were one count each of theft (beyond express/implied consent) and engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity.
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Zartman
Williams County prosecuting attorney Katherine Zartman decided to seek punishment in criminal court against Musamih due to the increasingly high amount ($21,991) of the alleged unpaid tolls coupled with the lengthy timeline of the offenses (April 12, 2024, to April 1, 2026), Skiles said.
He noted that the Ohio Turnpike repeatedly sent notices about unpaid fees that Musamih is accused of ignoring.
The trucker’s alleged repetitive behavior swayed the decision to seek a fourth-degree felony charge and include a provision in the indictment to forfeit the 2012 Freightliner Cascadia semi-truck since Musamih is the owner and/or possessor.
The indictment named the vehicle as contraband/property derived from or used to commit/facilitate the alleged criminal offense, which makes it subject to being forfeited.
“The offense is contrary to the form of the statute in such case made and provided and against the peace and dignity of the State of Ohio,” the indictment stated.
The grand jury on April 21 returned a true bill to prosecute the criminal case after finding Musamih acted “with purpose” to deprive the Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission of $21,991 in tolls.
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Ahmed
The commission identified the suspect through the technology in the turnpike’s new open-road tolling system, which launched on April 10, 2024.
“Our goal is to provide the safest and best conditions at the lowest toll rate possible on the Ohio Turnpike,” commission Executive Director Ferzan Ahmed said. “These companies are making it more difficult to do so. They have had every opportunity to pay their tolls but have ignored three mailed invoices and have been sent to collections.”
In a related development, the commission recently publicized the names of 315 alleged “rogue” trucking companies accused of failing to pay $5.2 million in tolls during the past two years. Some appear to have the characteristics of chameleon carriers.
