Border agents have seized thousands of counterfeit CDC vaccination cards from China headed to New Orleans
US Border Patrol seizes hundreds of counterfeit COVID-19 vaccination cards every day
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WASHINGTON (SBG) — U.S. Customs and Border Patrol announced they have
routinely seized shipments of hundreds of counterfeit COVID-19 Vaccination Cards coming into the port of Memphis, Tennessee, every day.
The shipments usually contain packs of 20, 50 or 100 of a hundred cards. However, the way the packages are labeled can vary.
"A suspicious shipment coming from Shenzhen, China en route to the central business district of New Orleans. It was described in the manifest as "PAPER CARD, PAPER" and CBPOs already knew what it was. It was the 15th such shipment of the night. Inside were 51 low quality, counterfeit
COVID-19 vaccination cards," a statement from the department read. "The cards have blanks for the recipient's name and birthdate, the vaccine maker, lot number, and date and place the shot was given, as well as the Center for Disease Control (CDC) logo in the upper right corner."
The cards in this particular shipment contained typos and misspelled words which also signaled to agents that something was off.
Border Patrol said the shipments are almost always from China and the recipients are all over the United States.
According to the agency to date, "Memphis has made 121 seizures totaling 3,017 of these vaccination cards."
In March 2021,
the FBI released a statement announcing that buying, selling, creating or using a counterfeit card is a crime and punishable by up to five years in prison as well as a fine.
"By misrepresenting yourself as vaccinated when entering schools, mass transit, workplaces, gyms, or places of worship, you put yourself and others around you at risk of contracting
COVID-19. Additionally, the unauthorized use of an official government agency's seal (such as HHS or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)) is a crime, and may be punishable under Title 18 United States Code, Section 1017, and other applicable laws," the FBI said in a statement.
Area Port Director of Memphis Michael Neipert said his officers are committed to stopping the counterfeit smuggling of COVID vaccinations cards into the United States.
"If you do not wish to receive a vaccine, that is your decision," said Neipert. "But don't order a counterfeit, waste my officer's time, break the law, and misrepresent yourself.
US Border Patrol seizes hundreds of counterfeit COVID-19 vaccination cards every day | WPEC (cbs12.com)
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