A 54-year-old Lyford man faces up to 20 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to extortion, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Patrick Gorena was originally indicted on November 2022 and pled guilty to the extortion charge Friday, court records reflect.

Gorena worked as a border investigator for Department of Transportation Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, where he demanded $3,500 from a trucking company in exchange for not reporting safety violations the company had committed, according to the news release.

Gorena ended up accepting $2,000 from an undercover law enforcement officer posing as a representative of the trucking company, the news release added.

Gorena is currently out on bond pending his sentencing that’s set for April 18.