This week, police arrested 11 Saratoga Springs High School students, two former students, one Skidmore College student, and a father who police say secured a money order for his child’s fake IDs.
They were charged with possession of a forged instrument, a misdemeanor. The parent, Stephen Smero, was charged with one felony count of possession of forged instrument and misdemeanor counts of unlawfully dealing with a child and conspiracy. Smero, 48, of Locus Grove Road, allegedly signed off on a money order for an ID for his 17-year-old daughter, Anna Smero.
Catone said none of the students had any idea of the potentially devastating long-term ramifications of their purchases.
“They’re teenagers,” he said. “Mortgages and loans 10, 20 years from now are not what they’re thinking about.”
ID Chief was an international operation. The orders were placed through an address in China, and the money was wired to Indonesia. The IDs themselves were crafted in England.
The subject of several federal investigations, ID Chief’s website has closed, but Catone said the company likely just shifted to another country and web address, adding that there are many similar sites up and running.
At the April 3 news conference announcing the arrests, authorities stressed the severity of policing counterfeit IDs, pointing out that they’re used by criminals and terrorists—including the 9/11 hijackers—to cross borders and board planes.
The IDs mimic a real license down to the barcodes. For $15, a buyer can have a holographic backdrop pressed on that mimics any state’s three-dimensional security mechanism.
“This is not the fake ID we adults think of. This is not chalking the ID or changing a 1 to a 7, or putting a poster board behind you that says a college’s name and taking a picture,” Murphy said.
Buyers use their real names, birth dates, pictures, and signatures, but can select any state they want. Catone said Pennsylvania was popular because, for some reason, their IDs easily scan through the system without warning.
The IDs are often obscured when shipped. Some were concealed in tea sets.
Copyright (c) 2012, Times Union (Albany, N.Y.). Visit Times Union online at www.timesunion.com. Distributed by MCT Information Services.
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