More than 800 minors were arrested last year in New York for using fake identification to buy alcohol, breaking a record for the number of people arrested on that charge, according to New York state Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s website.

In addition, more than 1,000 businesses in 2017 were penalized for selling alcohol to underage people in the state.

Throughout New York, 843 minors were arrested for using fake IDs, and 1,031 businesses were charged for the sale of alcohol to minors. In central New York, 133 minors were arrested for using fake IDs, and 83 businesses were penalized, according to Cuomo’s website.

The Department of Motor Vehicles and the New York State Liquor Authority worked with local police agencies for “Operation Prevent,” an initiative that targets people at concerts, bars and other events serving alcohol to minors.

To discourage the increasing use of fake IDs, the New York State Liquor Authority is working with local police agencies to stop underage drinking.

“Safety is the top priority,” said Jade Kraszewski, public information specialist at the New York State Liquor Authority office.

The DMV arrests minors using fake identification, while the New York State Liquor investigates establishments that sell alcohol to minors, Kraszewski said.

If a certain number of minors pass through an establishment in a certain period of time, the license can be cancelled or revoked, Kraszewski said. The Syracuse Police Department’s method of catching minors with fake IDs is different.

Sgt. Richard Helterline, a spokesman for the SPD, said city police work with state agencies to pick the day of the week when it’s most likely that minors with fake IDs visit a location. SPD then targets that location to crack down on fake ID users, Helterline said.

Real danger for minors comes from the people who give them fake IDs, said Owen McShane, director of investigations at the DMV. For a minor to buy a fake ID, some providers or websites require personal information such as a name, address or other form of identification. The fake ID provider can steal a person’s identity, he said. Most of the agencies that provide fake IDs are located overseas and can use personal information to commit felonies and make major purchases.

“Some people … last year have been recognized for using fake IDs have found out that houses have been purchased with their identities,” McShane said.

Both Helterline and Sgt. Jon Seeber, a spokesman for the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office, said once fake IDs are found by law enforcement, they are immediately confiscated.

“Our biggest issue is education of the risk of potentially being arrested and all the risk they are being exposed to,” McShane said. “We don’t want to be sneaky, and instead we declare even through social media which locations we are going to target in the next few weeks, but even after this we still encounter many fake ID users.”

Published on January 24, 2018 at 9:27 pm

Contact Pietro: pbaragio@syr.edu