Dozens of cars with fake license plates seized in NYC

Authorities seized dozens of cars with fake license plates in Harlem early Friday – and netted three charged illegal firearms in the process, officials said.

The joint operation between the New York City Sheriff’s Office and the NYPD used license plate readers to see the 54 vehicles with illegal and counterfeit paper license plates parked on Upper Manhattan streets, said city sheriff Joseph Fucito.

Two 9mm pistols and a .22 pistol were found in the cars, Fucito said.

The NYPD says getaway cars in robberies often have fake paper license plates.

Seth Gottfried

Five hundred cars with fake paper driving licenses have been seized in the last five months.

Seth Gottfried

The sheriff’s officers and officers also issued an additional 50 subpoenas to some of the vehicle owners for various parking and traffic violations.

The seizures were the latest in the city’s repression of illegal license plates, which law enforcement agencies say have allowed people to “bypass all types of public safety programs.”

NYPD officials have also linked the use of paper license plates to a number of getaway cars in shootings.

The city is cracking down on fake plates, and in the latest bust, police also uncovered three illegal firearms.

Seth Gottfried

The bust was a joint operation between the New York City Sheriff’s Office and the NYPD.

Seth Gottfried

In the last five months, a total of nearly 500 vehicles with fake plates have been seized and 480 subpoenas have been issued, Fucito said. So far, 60 people have been charged with crimes related to the illegal records, Fucito added.

Authorities seized 54 vehicles with fake paper number plates.

Seth Gottfried

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