NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — Fifteen people involved in a "fake COVID-19 vaccination card conspiracy" — including frontline and essential-employee workers — were indicted in Manhattan federal court Tuesday, D.A. Cyrus Vance announced.
Jasmine Clifford, 31, of Lyndhurst, New Jersey, allegedly sold around 250 forged COVID-19 vaccination cards on Instagram and used the assistance of Nadayza Barkley, 27, who worked at a healthcare clinic in Patchogue and allegedly had access to the New York State Immunization Information System database.
Barkley allegedly inputted at least 10 entries that Clifford had sent to her.
The database is the same that the state uses to generate the Excelsior Pass, which allows someone to show digital proof that they've been vaccinated.
The cards were advertised on Instagram for $200 each on the account "Anti-Vax Momma."
The two defendants are charged with offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree, and conspiracy in the fifth degree. Clifford also faces a criminal possession of a forged instrument in the second degree charge.
Thirteen individuals, believed to have worked in hospitals and nursing homes, face charges for purchasing the fake cards.
“We will continue to safeguard public health in New York with proactive investigations like these, but the stakes are too high to tackle fake vaccination cards with whack-a-mole prosecutions,” Vance said.
Vance urged social media companies to take action to ensure these platforms are not harboring public safety hazards.
“We need companies like Facebook to take action to prevent the fraud happening on their platforms," he added. "Making, selling, and purchasing forged vaccination cards are serious crimes with serious public safety consequences."
The investigation is ongoing and anyone with information of someone selling fake vaccination cards are asked to call the Office’s Financial Frauds Bureau at 212-335-8900.