Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia/Whoisjohngalt
A COVID-19 vaccination card.
By Forum Staff
A Little Neck man has been charged with being part of a scheme to distribute and sell false COVID-19 vaccination cards, federal prosecutors announced Thursday.
Jia Liu, 26, a Marine Corps reservist, and Steven Rodriguez, 27, a nurse at a clinic in Hempstead, L.I., were arraigned Thursday on an indictment charging them with one count of conspiring to defraud the United States Department of Health and Human Services and one count of conspiring to commit forgery.
Liu is additionally charged with one count of conspiring to defraud the United States Department of Defense for providing the cards to fellow Marine Corps reservists.
The indictment alleges that from at least March 2021 to February 2022, the defendants conspired to steal and forge COVID-19 Vaccination Cards to falsely record persons as immunized with vaccines that protect against COVID-19, when in reality, they had not been immunized. In addition to selling stolen and false cards to unvaccinated persons, Liu and Rodriguez also conspired to enter false COVID-19 vaccination records into New York state databases, allowing unvaccinated individuals to receive the Excelsior Pass, which displays a user’s vaccination status in a digital app.
According to court documents, Liu purchased blank COVID-19 vaccination cards from Rodriguez, and then forged and distributed them to buyers and other co-conspirators for a profit. Liu also directed buyers to meet Rodriguez in person at the healthcare clinic to purchase fraudulent cards. Rodriguez would meet the buyer, but instead of administering the vaccine he destroyed a vial of vaccine intended to be used to vaccinate a patient. He then provided a forged COVID-19 vaccination card to the buyer that he completed to make it falsely appear that the buyer had received a dose of vaccine. He further made entries in the Immunization Databases falsely indicating that the buyer had been vaccinated.
After the U.S. Department of Defense imposed a requirement that all active and reserve military service members be vaccinated against COVID-19, from August 2021 to January 2022, Liu created and distributed false COVID-19 vaccination cards to United States Marine Corps reservists to help them evade vaccination requirements.
The defendants promoted their scheme through messages on encrypted messaging applications and on social media. They referred to COVID-19 vaccination cards using code names, such as “gift cards,” “Cardi Bs,” “Christmas cards” and “Pokemon cards.” The defendants distributed at least 300 stolen or false COVID-19 vaccination cards and created more than 70 false entries in the Immunization Databases.
All COVID-19 vaccination providers are required to give individuals who receive a COVID-19 vaccine a COVID-19 vaccination card. These COVID-19 vaccination cards list the name and date of birth of the patient, name of the manufacturer of the COVID-19 vaccine that the patient received, the date the patient receives it, the lot number of the vaccine dose, and the location where each dose is administered.
Proof of vaccination, as reflected in a COVID-19 vaccination card or Excelsior Pass, is required to travel to certain locations and attend certain events where large numbers of people congregate, such as sporting events, concerts, restaurants, and bars. In addition, some employers and government agencies require employees to have received a COVID-19 vaccination.
