This browser does not support the Video element.
Fake license plate leaves man battling traffic tickets
A Northern Virginia man says a cloned version of his vanity license plate generated years of traffic tickets for vehicles he doesn’t own.
VIENNA, Va. - A Northern Virginia man says he has spent years fighting traffic tickets tied to a car he doesn’t own, after someone allegedly created fake copies of his vanity license plate and used them on other vehicles.
What we know:
Jay Rosenberg, who recently moved to Vienna from Montgomery County, Maryland, says someone has repeatedly copied his Maryland vanity license plate, which reads "PRIVATE."
According to Rosenberg, the cloned plate has been linked to at least 20 traffic violations, most of them issued in Washington, D.C., and Prince George’s County.
FOX 5 spoke with Jay Rosenberg at his Vienna home where he showed stacks of citations, tickets, and violations, mostly from DC and Prince George's County, Maryland. The license plate pictured on the infractions says PRIVATE like Rosenberg's tag, but he says it's not his car.
In at least one case, the vehicle receiving the citation did not appear to have registration stickers matching his legitimate plate.
What they're saying:
"Why is it not picking up through AI that this is not the right tag for this car," Rosenberg told FOX 5.
"There are people that can go to places like Amazon and order a vanity tag… and put in your own numbers," he said.
Rosenberg says this all started a couple of years ago and only stopped once he sold the car in question and changed his license plate.
The backstory:
Rosenberg believes the issue is larger than his own case and may be occurring nationwide.
He says a friend in New York experienced a similar situation involving a cloned license plate.
"There are people who have to hire lawyers, who don't know how to fix them, who are getting their licenses suspended and now Kathy Hochul is suggesting whether it's police or camera, if you have too many tickets she's going to put a device in your car to slow it down," said Rosenberg.
What's next:
FOX 5 reached out to officials in both Washington and Prince George’s County.
Prince George’s County had not responded as of publication.
A spokesperson from the DC Department of Transportation issued the following statement:
"All of the District Department of Transportation automated safety camera citations undergo a review process before they are issued. If a vehicle owner believes a citation was issued in error, they have the right to contest it through the District’s adjudication process. In cases where evidence demonstrates the citation was incorrectly attributed, the citation may be dismissed. Vehicle owners can visit dmv.dc.gov for information on how to challenge a citation and access available adjudication options."