Ten Fake ID Rings Shut Down in Arizona

Here is a good example how identity theft, illegal immigration and (maybe) terrorism could be tied in together. KVOA Tucson is reporting:

Ten fraudulent document rings were shut down today after 16 people were booked on allegations that they made and sold fake I-Ds in metropolitan Phoenix. Officials said the rings produced hundreds of driver's licenses, Social Security cards and "green cards."

The operations were run out of more than a dozen locations, most in Phoenix but one in Glendale and another in Scottsdale.

Leesa Berens Morrison, leader of a task force of police focusing on fraudulent identification, says undercover officers bought fraudulent documents using the names of two known terrorists.

Link to KVOA story, here.

Recently, I did a post about Saud Leija - who is a family member of one of the fake ID cartels - working with the authorities. She quoted her grandfather as saying "Terrorism is an American problem, not a Mexican problem."

The fact that the authorities were able to get identification using the names of two known terrorists supports Saud Leija's statements.

Interestingly enough, MSN Money (and others) have named Arizona as the having the highest rate of identity theft.

MSN story, here.

Financial crimes aren't the only issue we need to consider when we look at the identity theft problem.