Customs and Border Protection (CPB), part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, said Monday (Jan. 5) that in 2020 they seized 14,504 forged identity documents at the Port of Cincinnati in Ohio, the vast majority of which originated in China and Hong Kong.
In a press release, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said the counterfeit identification documents seized by Customs agents at the Port of Cincinnati included driver’s licenses, holographic stickers or stamps, laminated materials, Social Security cards, passports, visas and other types of identification documents. More than 97 percent of all of these forged documents originated in China and Hong Kong.
CBP officials found that holographic stickers, laminated materials, and stamps were often shipped with blank cards, indicating an intent to create fake credit and identification cards to be sold on the black market.
The documents were on their way to be shipped to addresses across the United States.
“Fake IDs are being used to help underage drinking, which is inherently dangerous,” said Richard Gillespie, a supervisor at the Port of Cincinnati.
He said there are darker uses for the fake documents. “Fake documents have been linked to identity theft, public benefits fraud and human trafficking, and they are used by terrorists to evade travel screening measures.”
The official said U.S. customs officials and specialists are trained to identify fake IDs, and they are committed to protecting innocent civilians.
U.S. Customs has increased its efforts in the past year to target small, illegal shipments from China and suspected forced labor products for seizure.
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