Owings Mills Man, 23, Charged For Selling Fake COVID-19 Vaccine Cards On Social Media

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OWINGS MILLS, Md. (WJZ) — A 23-year-old Owings Mills antheral faces national charges for distributing fake COVID-19 vaccination cards, according to the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland.

Amar Salim Shabazz faces up to 20 years successful situation for message fraud and obstruction of justness successful transportation with the organisation of the cards.

According to the transgression complaint, since June 2021, Shabazz purchased implicit 600 fraudulent COVID-19 vaccinations cards done a overseas online marketplace and had them illegally shipped to him.

He past advertised them connected societal media, and helium wasn’t shy astir it.

According to the complaint, Shabazz posted a video of the cards connected 2 of his societal media accounts with the caption “Covid19 vaccination paper who privation one. $75 a pop.”

Shabazz allegedly messaged idiosyncratic erstwhile helium was sold out: “Made 300 today. I’m sold out. Just bought 500 much cards. 60×500 is $30k. I’m gonna beryllium rich.”

On August 19, CBP officers seized a shipment sent to Shabazz’s address. The carrier’s website said the bundle had been delayed astatine U.S. Customs. Shabazz past allegedly searched the operation “customs inspection packages VACCINATION cards” and watched a video titled, “FBI investigating fake vaccination cards.”

Shabazz past made different bid and began selling those cards for $70 each.

Investigators interviewed customers of Shabazz extracurricular of Maryland and confiscated the fake cards. On October 1, they executed a hunt warrant astatine a basement Shabazz worked retired of.

There, instrumentality enforcement recovered a list, “Things I’m doing erstwhile I get retired (updated).”

In aboriginal 2021, Shabazz was an inmate of the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services aft being sentenced for possession of kid pornography. He was released successful April 2021.

Officials said the database included obtaining 2 “burner” compartment phones, with the note, “first burner is for scamming.” Another slug constituent reportedly said, “hire a lawyer and get tips of what not to bash erstwhile getting wealth illegally.”

The adjacent day, Shabazz allegedly researched however to delete his relationship connected the overseas marketplace website helium utilized to acquisition the cards, and deleted his email account.

The National Association of Attorneys General astatine the opening of April called on eBay, Shopify and Twitter to halt radical from selling oregon advertizing fake CDC vaccine cards connected their platforms.

In May, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to heighten efforts to combat and forestall pandemic-related fraud.

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Anyone with accusation astir allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 tin study it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline astatine 866-720-5721 oregon via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.