Thread: 5 charged in alleged fake ID scheme

5 charged in alleged fake ID scheme
by: Lisa Brown
(9/16/2009)

Five people accused of making fake ID cards and attempting to bribe a DMV employee, were arrested Monday by DMV inspectors in Gaston and Rutherford counties.

Lincoln County DMV officials were among those involved in the investigation.

Mario Ziranda, 35, and Elvis Sanchez, 28, both of 272 Roberson Lane in Forest City, were charged with common law forgery and manufacturing North Carolina driver licenses, authorities said.

They are held in the Rutherford County Jail each on a $75,000 secured bond.

Inspectors also arrested Claudina Morales Rodriguez, 29, and Alfredo Lopez Hernandez, 29, both of Gastonia, and Juan Alberto Goddy Vasquez, 37, of Kings Mountain, on charges of attempting to bribe a state drivers license examiner to obtain a new license.

The suspects are held in the Gaston County Jail each on a $10,000 secured bond.

Sanchez, Morales, Vasquez and Hernandez are all believed to be in the U.S. illegally, Marge Howell, spokeswomen for the N.C. Department of Transportation said in a news release.

The arrests stemmed from an investigation into the operation of a document lab used to manufacture several counterfeit documents that included Social Security cards, birth certificates and drivers licenses from six states, Howell said.

In addition to the counterfeit documents, authorities seized $8,000 in cash as well as 15 grams of cocaine from the Forest City residence.

“I am proud of the DMV License and Theft Bureau personnel for their hard work on this investigation,â€

Those 'Bonds' should be much, much higher!