“Charlie,” “Angel” and a Post reporter await the delivery of fake IDs on a street corner in Jackson Heights, where officials believe at least 10 identity-card forgery mills operate.(nypost.com) |
It’s a passport to trouble — and it can be bought for just $260 on the streets of Jackson Heights, Queens. In just one hour, The Post was able to buy a phony green card, Social Security card and New York state driver’s license from a stranger on a corner — all of which could serve as a gateway to obtain legitimate IDs. The cards are frighteningly real — convincing enough to fool creditors, potential employers and security at buildings and even the airport. Experts said the biggest fear is that these IDs are being bought by people who slipped past border crossings. “You get that legitimate ID, and this one goes away,” said John Cutter, retired NYPD deputy chief of the Intelligence Division, as he tossed the fake Social Security card in the air. “The next thing you know, you’re legit even though you never came across the border legally, nobody really knows who you are, you’ve never paid taxes, but now you’re a legitimate citizen, and now you start your history. “That’s the scary part, because, let’s face it, people working in government agencies aren’t always cognizant of the security risks of these things,” said Cutter, who runs a private security company. On Roosevelt Avenue, known to investigators as the “East Coast epicenter” for fake IDs, officials believe 10 mills operate between 103rd and 76th streets. In 2007, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown netted one of the gang-related groups. It was raking in more than $1 million annually selling the bogus cards on the streets. Investigators found that while most of the ring’s buyers were illegal immigrants, a handful were criminals involved in identity theft. Five years later, the illegal industry continues to thrive and sellers on the street avoid the watchful eyes of patrol cops and surveillance cameras. (Read by Emily Cheng. Emily Cheng is a journalist at the China Daily Website.) (Agencies) |
擔(dān)心沒(méi)護(hù)照?只要花上260美元,你就能在紐約皇后區(qū)的繁華商業(yè)街杰克遜高地買到假證。 僅用一個(gè)小時(shí),《紐約郵報(bào)》的記者就從角落里的一個(gè)陌生人手中買到了假綠卡、社會(huì)安全卡與紐約州駕照,擁有了這些,你就可以獲得合法身份證明了。 這些證件足以以假亂真,足以騙過(guò)債主、未來(lái)雇主、樓宇甚至機(jī)場(chǎng)的安保人員。 專家表示,最擔(dān)心的是這些身份證明被賣給了非法入境的人們。 已經(jīng)退休的紐約市警察局情報(bào)處副處長(zhǎng)約翰?卡特爾撕掉假的社會(huì)安全卡扔向空中,說(shuō):“你得到了合法的身份證明之后,就不需要它了?!?/p> “之后,即便你是非法入境,你的身份也合法了,沒(méi)人真正知道你是誰(shuí),你從沒(méi)有繳過(guò)稅,但你現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)是合法公民,開(kāi)始了你以合法身份在美國(guó)生活的歷史?!?/p> 卡特爾說(shuō):“這正是恐怖之處,因?yàn)?,事?shí)上,政府工作人員不總能意識(shí)到這類事情的安全風(fēng)險(xiǎn)?!笨ㄌ貭栭_(kāi)了一家私人安全公司。 在被調(diào)查人員稱為假證“東海岸中心”羅斯福大街,政府官員認(rèn)為在103號(hào)大街和76號(hào)大街之間有十個(gè)假證團(tuán)伙。 在2007年,皇后區(qū)地方檢察官理查德?布朗抓獲了一個(gè)辦假證團(tuán)伙,他們?cè)诖蠼稚铣鍪奂僮C的年收入可超過(guò)100萬(wàn)美元。調(diào)查人員發(fā)現(xiàn),盡管該團(tuán)伙的大部分買家是非法移民,仍有一部分人是參與身份盜用的罪犯。 五年后,這一非法產(chǎn)業(yè)仍然非常猖獗,大街上的賣家躲開(kāi)巡警的犀利目光和攝像頭監(jiān)控出售假證。 相關(guān)閱讀 美州立大學(xué)被曝造假 中國(guó)留學(xué)生占多數(shù) 美女子撿巨獎(jiǎng)彩票 引發(fā)三方爭(zhēng)奪戰(zhàn) 美國(guó)白宮提出“網(wǎng)絡(luò)隱私權(quán)議案” (中國(guó)日?qǐng)?bào)網(wǎng)英語(yǔ)點(diǎn)津 Julie 編輯:陳丹妮) |
Vocabulary: phony: 假冒的,欺騙的 cognizant: 知道的,已認(rèn)知的 rake in: 迅速取得,大量斂財(cái) |