Nassau County District Attorney

Nassau County District Attorney Denis Dillon announced today that for the past several months his Office coordinated as well as participated in a multi-agency task force to combat the manufacture and sale of fraudulent official government identification. Operation "FIST" (Fraudulent Identification Search & Tracking) began as a 60 day initiative and then was extended due to its success. This initiative led to the development of informants and to on-going long term investigations leading toward the arrest of the suppliers of these documents. Participants of the task force were:

Nassau County District Attorney’s Office

New York State Office of Homeland Security

New York State Department of Motor Vehicles

Nassau County Police Department

New York State Police

Social Security Administration Inspector General’s Office

United States Secret Service

United States Postal Inspection Service

Department of Homeland Security (U.S. Customs & Border Protection)

Hempstead Police Department

"The primary objective of this task force was to develop reliable information that would lead law enforcement to the source of fraudulent identification," said Dillon. "The documents of main interest included, but were not limited to, phony drivers licenses, resident alien cards, and social security cards. The problems inherent in manufacturing or buying fraudulent identification are twofold. First, it conceals an individual’s true identity which aids in their participation in deceptive and criminal conduct. Secondly, it can be used as a basis or first step towards obtaining legitimate official government issued identification for individuals who would not otherwise be entitled. False identities are the cornerstone of terrorists’ ability to operate through virtually undetectable and unidentifiable means."

This operation was highly successful on several levels. The "FIST" task force produced in excess of 40 arrests. From these arrests, we have obtained invaluable information that continues to help us in handling these issues as they relate to Nassau County. Upon disposition of the state charges, we have referred many of these defendants to the appropriate federal agency to determine potential immigration consequences. We seized many documents during this operation, totaling approximately 60 forms of identification including:

"One of the 41 people arrested was Henry Flores, 20, of 316 Chester Street, Uniondale who is a former employee of the Nassau County Information Technology Department," said Dillon. "On several occasions, Mr. Flores sold phoney New York State drivers licenses to undercover investigators. Examination of the licenses by the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles revealed these documents to be an exceptionally high quality product. To date he has been charged with 5 counts of Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the Second Degree, a Class D Felony."

"We are no longer dealing with poor quality plastic laminated photos that are obvious in their fraudulence," said Dillon. "The documents revealed in this case are being produced by individuals who are purchasing special ordered paper and willing to spend long periods of time sanding and treating it in order to give the paper an authentic texture. These manufacturers are extremely knowledgeable in computers which enable them to develop and maneuver through difficult multilayered computer templates."

The effects of the task force have been far reaching. Information developed during the course of this project resulted in arrests not only in Nassau County, but neighboring states as well. The cooperation and follow up investigations have resulted in several arrests, with more anticipated.

Operation "FIST" represents the culmination of shared efforts between local, state, and federal law enforcement. It has confirmed that the ability to create your own identity, and a legal status where there is none, is a significant problem in Nassau County. The exchange of information and resources contributed to the overall success of this endeavor. The arrests and subsequent intelligence that we developed have provided invaluable information that continues to help us to prosecute and prevent crimes of this nature. As the technology advances, the quality of the fraudulent identification will improve. Local, state, and federal agencies are now aware of the need to include more sophisticated security features contained within the documents they issue to the public.

"One direct benefit of this case is our realization that current law has several loopholes that inhibit full prosecution of people who forge government identification," said Dillon. "I will draft a legislative proposal to add two new crimes to our Penal Law. The first would make it a more serious felony to knowingly possess forged government-issued identification with the intent to sell it. The second proposal would make it a felony in New York to sell such forged identification."

"We appreciate all the hard work by DA Denis Dillon and the entire Nassau law enforcement community in making the Nassau County Fraudulent Identification Documents Task Force - the latest in a series of multi-jurisdicational efforts implemented by Governor Pataki after September 11th - such a success," said New York State Office of Homeland Security Director James W. McMahon.

New York State Department of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Raymond P. Martinez said, "Stopping fraudulent documents from being made, sold, and used is a priority to the DMV. Working together with state, local and county law enforcement we can make sure that those who create and sell fraudulent licenses and other government documents are identified and brought to justice. Furthermore, the recently-redesigned New York State driver license and non-driver identification card with added state-of-the-art security features will help drive-out fraudulent document mills. I commend everyone involved in 'FIST' for their hard work and commitment."

"Possessing a fraudulent Social Security number to obtain a valid NYS Drivers license is a way for individuals to cover their true identity and assimilate into our society. For this reason, our office is committed to the aggressive pursuit of individuals engaged in this type of illegal activity, and this objective can only be accomplished through the type of cooperation demonstrated by this task force," said Social Security Inspector General Special Agent in Charge Edward J. Ryan.

The charges are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

October 6, 2005

DILLON ANNOUNCES:

SUCCESSFUL RESULTS OF OPERATION F.I.S.T.