HOUSTON — Two former Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector’s Office employees were arrested for allegedly participating in a bribery scheme that produced fraudulent vehicle registrations and title transfers without required insurance and inspection documentation.
Renisha Wilkins, 35, and Sarah Anderson, 31, reportedly used their positions as auto title registration clerks to override system checks in the Texas Registration Titling System, allowing registrations to be issued without verifying vehicle insurance and emissions inspections, according to court records.
The arrests followed a two-year investigation launched after the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles alerted the county that Harris County vehicle registrations were being sold on TikTok and Facebook. The scheme involved Adriana De La Rosa and Oswaldo Perez, owners of a south Houston vehicle title-service company, who allegedly paid Wilkins and Anderson tens of thousands of dollars in bribes.
Court records show De La Rosa and Perez advertised vehicle registration stickers that bypassed insurance and inspection requirements. Investigators linked the stickers to fraudulent transactions processed by Anderson and Wilkins, with Anderson reportedly using her personal credit card to complete some payments. Wilkins allegedly processed 96 fraudulent transactions, while Anderson processed at least 10. Anderson admitted in a 2024 police interview that she accepted $300 per transaction from friends and family to bypass required documentation. Anderson’s employment was terminated in April 2024.
Harris County Precinct 1 Constable Alan Rosen said the tax office cooperated fully with the investigation. “This involves public corruption by those who violated the people’s trust in government and abused their positions to line their own pockets,” Rosen said.
If convicted, each defendant could face up to 99 years or life in prison and fines of up to $10,000.