Saturday, Feb. 3, 2001 | 11:04 a.m.
A14-year-old Las Vegas girl recently took her 21-year-old sister's frayed work card to Metro Police and, because she resembled her older sibling, got it reshot with her photo.
That was all the fake identification she needed to get a job at a local strip club.
"Before we solved the case, she was pulling down $1,200 a night in tips," undercover forgery Detective Kim Thomas said, noting the club was in the clear because the fake ID -- a work card -- was a genuine Metro-issued document.
Such clever scams are nothing new to Thomas. Today's good fake IDs and forged credit cards, he said, are either computer-generated or made from materials secreted from military bases and motor vehicle departments -- or a combination of both.
The Internet is brimming with so-called "novelty ID" sites where would-be forgers can download "specimen" cards lifted from books that were published to help merchants tell bogus documents from the real McCoy. Testimony last year before a U.S. Senate subcommittee indicated about 30 percent of all fake IDs come from the Internet.
On top of that, experts say, today's computer software is so sophisticated it can be used to create ID cards and other counterfeit papers that generate series of numbers that match those of real documents.
Combine the Internet and high-tech software with today's desktop-publishing equipment and relatively inexpensive color copiers and amateur forgers can become professionals pretty quickly.
Metro statistics show that last year local businesses lost at least $1.1 million because of fraud generated by fake IDs and forged credit cards. From July to December, 325 people were arrested by Metro on forgery charges.
"The thing I love about my job is the challenge," Thomas said. "Even my dumbest criminals are smart criminals."
Back to school
And because the bad guys are getting smarter, Metro is going back to school.
"We are in the process of setting up an Internet squad," forgery Sgt. Les Lane said. "We have received a $15,000 grant to help us get started, and we will be sending three of our detectives to a class to learn how to operate a computer to figure out a crime."
Thomas said that while an average bank robbery can net a thief $1,500, a crook who steals someone's identity -- a felony in Nevada since October 1999 -- can reap $70,000 in goods, services and cash in one weekend.
Forgery detectives, such as the 11 at Metro, operate in a world where huge amounts of stolen revenues are simply written off, hampering law enforcement's efforts to get a handle on how serious the problem is.
"The victim knows that by reporting to the credit-card company that an expense on his statement is not his, he won't be held responsible to pay it," Thomas said. "The company where the merchandise was purchased still gets its money.
"The credit-card issuer makes hundreds of millions of dollars and expects to lose millions (in forgeries), so it is easier to write it off than face the publicity that the company was victimized.
"Generally none of these parties report these crimes to the police. The criminal knows all of this."
And while Thomas says that forgers range in age from teenagers to skilled older craftsmen, local high school students who grew up with computers say they are unfairly singled out as the main culprits.
"It really is not a big problem on this campus," a Western High School computer-class student said, noting that her top Internet priority has been to find the perfect prom dress. "I'm sure it is moderately easy to get a fake ID, but I wouldn't know where to get one."
Several Western students who spoke on condition of anonymity at the request of school officials said the Internet is more of a source for games, audio and movie streamings than for illegal activity.
One senior, however, said that while surfing the 'Net, he has seen websites that offer templates for fake IDs, mostly from California, Florida and Oregon. That student said he works in a computer store that has trained him to look for fake IDs and credit cards from people purchasing goods.
"You have to be careful because a credit-card charge can always be disputed," the 18-year-old said, noting he has caught two fake credit cards by following store procedures.
Ron Taylor, Western High's Education Computer strategist who oversees the school's computer classes, said installing filters and other safeguards can only do so much to keep students from using the Internet for illegal purposes.
Finding the back door
"These kids are smart enough to find the back door to any filter," Taylor said. "That is why any good computer teacher stresses ethics -- teaching the kids right from wrong and the consequences of doing wrong."
While Taylor says schools take precautions with their computers -- at Western teachers can use their computers to view any website the students are looking at -- it's often a different story at home.
"I wish Mom and Dad would get more involved when their children use home computers," he said. "The problem is that the kids are computer-literate and their parents are not. That will change when these kids some day have children, because they will know what their kids are doing."
The forgery cases that Thomas and other Metro detectives handle can boggle the mind.
"We have seen incidents where hotel registration clerks, when they get too busy, allow (computer print-out) check-in sheets to run over the top of the counter," Thomas said.
"A man will walk by, tear off the sheet and be gone. He can make $50 to $200 for each check-in, which often includes a name, address and credit-card number."
More than garbage
Another caper that Thomas solved involved a forger who got his data by going to banks and simply grabbing the trash out of the cans beside the counters where people fill out deposit slips or write checks.
Thomas said people who make mistakes often just toss the check or deposit slip into the can, then write a new one. Trash like that netted the criminal $60,000 before he was nabbed, Thomas said.
Also, Thomas said, almost any illegal alien in town can tell you of a place on Bonanza Road where for $200 you can buy a package consisting of a driver's license, resident-alien card and Social Security card -- all good fakes.
"These are the very pieces of identification that are needed to work in our hotel industry," Thomas said, noting that people also can use the IDs to get jobs as independent contractors where taxes are not taken out -- and that's where the real scam comes in.
"If these cards are made from stolen identities of living people -- and people are working all over the country under those names and Social Security numbers making money and not paying taxes -- who do you think the Internal Revenue Service is going to come after for the taxes?" Thomas said.
Because of such devastating financial consequences associated with an identity being stolen, Metro lobbied the Legislature to increase the crime from a misdemeanor to a felony. However, the mere possession of a fake ID is still a misdemeanor.
Today's fake ID manufacturers sell products of varying qualities. An underaged kid, seeking a fair false driver's license to go "clubbing," would pay about $50, Thomas said. Much better quality fakes costing $200 or more are produced for credit-card fraud crimes.
"We have had situations where blanks (laminated portions of a card that usually contains a hologram) have been used to create good fake IDs," Thomas said. "Last year, we recovered 200 blanks that came from the Department of Motor Vehicles.
"We also have come across blanks from military bases" used to make fake military IDs -- a hot item in Las Vegas because of nearby Nellis Air Force Base, he said.
Thomas said it is common in such cases for the forger to obtain blanks either by working with -- or bribing -- an employee at a DMV or military base to steal them.
"There have been cases of postal employees stealing bags of mail, and mailbox companies dumping stacks of records in Dumpsters without first shredding them -- the criminals get the information from everywhere," Thomas said.
'Breeder document'
In cases where good forgers use genuine materials to make a so-called "breeder document," it is difficult for even the sharpest merchants to avoid becoming victims. A good breeder document can be used to obtain real credit cards from banks and even buy cars and houses, Thomas said.
But while some crooks are sophisticated enough to create good fake cards, many simply prefer stealing real ones and doctoring them.
Despite theft guards placed into the cards -- holograms, signature boxes that smear when erased and symbols in fonts that cannot be generated by an ordinary computer -- crooks still find ways to get money off of them.
One old scam that still works, Thomas said, is "ironing." Under this process, the raised-letter name on a stolen legitimate credit card is rubbed flat after the bottom of the card is boiled in water and made soft. The name from a fake ID is then embossed on the card over the rubbed out name.
The criminal then goes to a casino cash machine that requires a cage clerk to dispense the money and swipes the metallic strip of the altered card through the automated teller. The card is approved on the victim's account and a clerk issues the money because the names on the tampered card and fake ID match. Simple prevention methods, although not foolproof, go a long way toward protecting people and businesses from such crimes. Merchants can spot many fake IDs just by paying attention to a few telltale signs such as tampered card numbers, Thomas said.
A clerk can simply look at the card and make sure the information matches. If a 5-foot-7-inch person has an ID that says he's 6-foot-2, it's probably a fake.
Also, on a Nevada driver's license, the head should fill the photo square. With most fakes, the head on the photo is smaller. Also, the state seal hologram on a genuine card has a gold tint to it. Most fakes have white or silver holograms.
Then again, fake IDs are not necessary when clerks are not trained to check IDs in the first place.
Henderson Police Sgt. David Kirwan runs a monthly alcohol compliance check on that city's 150-plus liquor licensees. He sends 18- and 19-year-olds into stores with their actual driver's licenses that read "minor under 21."
The most recent operation at 73 outlets resulted in 17 citations for selling liquor to the minors, each carrying a potential $615 fine.
"Some are not even asking for IDs," Kirwan said. "Others look at the driver's licenses and can't do the math to figure they are not 21."
Kirwan said the kids he sends in are watched by police, who move in if liquor is sold to them. Before the program began a year ago, each business was sent a letter warning about the sting operation that is funded with federal money aimed at preventing teen drinking at the source.
By the same token, Kirwan says he has told the businesses that the police department also will help them by taking action against underaged people who use fake IDs.
"We just don't get that many calls (about fake IDs at bars and stores)," he said.
One stop on Kirwan's route is Thirstbusters Casino, where recently one of its bartenders was given a police commendation for carding one of the volunteer police operatives and refusing to serve that person alcohol.
"Our employment packages stress the importance of checking IDs," said Bonnie Diamond, general manager of Thirstbusters, which has 55 slot machines and a restaurant.
"We take steps to prevent minors from being where they should not be. After 10 p.m., no minors are allowed in the restaurant. We look carefully at IDs to see if they have been tampered with. If there is any doubt on our part, we simply refuse to serve them."
As for preventing scams using fake credit cards, Diamond said it is tough for small businesses to determine how much protection they need or afford.
Being careful
"We have systems in place and our cashiers are trained on those systems, but we have to be realistic," she said. "We can't spend $2,000 on a system to save $400. You just have to be careful. For instance, we don't cash checks unless the person has a card on file."
Not all fake IDs are used for obtaining money and alcohol illegally. Recently, a Clark County Health Board investigation into parents' complaints of kids getting body piercings at area tattoo parlors without permission revealed the use of some pretty convincing fake IDs.
"I only got to see the photocopies of the IDs that the tattoo parlor operators made to protect themselves, and the cards looked reasonable," said Philippa Pointon, senior environmental health specialist who investigated the complaints.
"We found the tattoo parlors were diligent in trying to prevent underaged people from getting tattoos or piercings without parental approval."
Out of that investigation, the health board made changes in its tattoo-parlor regulations. It now is mandatory for all tattoo businesses to make photocopies of IDs and for parents to be present when their child is tattooed or pierced.
But as long as there have been laws prohibiting young people from doing what adults are allowed to do, there has been fake IDs. Police are not saying they will solve that problem anytime soon.
"We will keep getting smarter, issuing warrants and making arrests," Thomas said. "This is the crime of the future."
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