TALLINN, Monday 6 September 2010 (AFP) - Estonian authorities said Monday they had busted a trio of alleged fraudsters who helped people pass written driving exams using a camera hidden in a tie, and bribed a road-test examiner.

"The gang told the person arriving to take the test to follow a formal dress code, so that a special tie with a camera could be attached to them," prosecutor Steven Hristo Evestus told reporters.

That enabled the gang members to see the questions and read out the answers in the driving-theory exam via a small mobile phone earpiece.

In addition, the gang allegedly guaranteed candidates a pass in their road tests thanks to a corrupt examiner.

Police began investigating last year after a tip-off that candidates were being offered the chance to pass driving tests in exchange for payment.

They were snared after an undercover police officer posing as a would-be cheat contacted them and then took the test with their help.

It remains unclear how many candidates actually passed the exams with their help.

Helping someone cheat an exam is not a crime in Estonia, meaning the gang members can only be charged with soliciting bribes on someone else's behalf, an offence carrying a one-year prison sentence.

The driving examiner involved in the case risks five years behind bars for corruption.