You are reading

New York City Sheriff Seizes More Than 50 Vehicles With Illegal Paper Plates in Queens

Deputy sheriffs impound a car with an illegal paper license in Queens (NYC Sheriff’s Office)

Sept. 8, 2021 By Allie Griffin

The New York City Sheriff’s Office seized dozens of vehicles with bogus and expired paper license plates in Queens last week.

Deputy sheriffs impounded 53 vehicles with counterfeit paper plates on streets in Glendale, Maspeth, Middle Village, Ridgewood, Woodhaven and Woodside Friday as part of a citywide crackdown.

The officers also issued more than 50 summonses for a variety of parking and traffic offenses.

The sale and use of illegal and counterfeit paper license plates proliferated during the pandemic when local Department of Motor Vehicles (DMVs) were shuttered, law enforcement officials said.

The fake plates make it difficult for officers to identify suspects who speed and drive recklessly or commit other crimes.

“Vehicles with illegal paper license plates circumvent a panoply of public safety laws and regulatory programs such as speed, red light, and bus lane cameras,” NYC Sheriff Joseph Fucito said in a statement. “Illegal paper plates conceal a vehicle owner’s true identification from the police when used during the commission of a crime.”

The NYC Sheriff’s Office conducted the Queens raid from midnight to 8 a.m. Friday as part of its 5-borough operation known as “CON-Temporary.”

Through the operation, deputy sheriffs have seized 238 vehicles, issued more than 200 traffic summonses and charged 21 individuals with various crimes related to displaying illegal paper license plates on vehicles since June.

Council Member Robert Holden requested the Sheriff’s Office bring its operation to Queens—and to focus on some of the borough’s trouble spots.

“I requested this enforcement because fake and obscured plates are used to allow scofflaws to get away with reckless, dangerous driving, as well as to commit other crimes,” Holden said. “We need to make it clear that anyone who uses them will pay the price and I will continue to ask for more of these operations.”

email the author: news@queenspost.com
No comments yet

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.


The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

Twenty people indicted in Queens-based $4.6M vehicle theft ring after three-year probe: DA

Twenty individuals were indicted and variously charged in a wide-ranging scheme to steal cars in Queens, throughout New York City and its suburbs, following a three-year investigation by the Queens District Attorney’s Office, the NYPD, and the New York State Police dubbed “Operation Hellcat,” into the criminal enterprise based in Queens.

Some of the vehicles were stolen from owners’ driveways, some with the keys or key fobs inside. The stolen vehicles were often sold through advertisements on social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. The defendants are charged in nine separate indictments for a total of 373 counts, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced on Thursday.

Masked gunman robs Total Wireless store in Flushing, steals $6K: NYPD

Police from the 109th Precinct in Flushing are looking for a masked gunman who pulled off an armed robbery at a cell phone store on the night of Monday, May 5.

The suspect entered the Total Wireless shop located in the old Hua Cheng Restaurant at 41-19 Kissena Blvd., across the street from the Queens Public Library branch, just before 7 p.m. He approached the counter, pulled out a firearm, and threatened the 27-year-old woman who was working the night shift, police said Wednesday.