Instagrammer 'AntiVaxMomma' is charged with selling 250 fake Covid vaccination cards for $200 each - with buyers including NYC nursing home workers and hospital staff
A New Jersey woman calling herself the AntiVaxMomma on Instagram sold several hundred fake COVID-19 vaccination cards at $200 a pop to New York City-area jab dodgers, including people working in hospitals and nursing homes, prosecutors said Tuesday.
Jasmine Clifford, of Lyndhurst, New Jersey, was charged Tuesday with offering a false instrument, criminal possession of a forged instrument and conspiracy. Authorities say she sold about 250 fake vaccine cards in recent months.
For an extra $250, a second scammer would then enter a bogus card buyer's name into a New York state vaccination database, which feeds systems used to verify vaccine status at places they're required, such as concerts and sporting events, prosecutors said.
Clifford is a stripper who goes by the name '5StarJaziii' online, according to the New York Post.
Alleged co-conspirator, Nadayza Barkley, of Bellport, Long Island, worked in a medical clinic in Patchogue and was able to enter customers' details into official systems so it looked like they had received their shots, prosecutors say.
Barkley did not enter a plea an an arraignment Tuesday morning in Manhattan criminal court on charges of offering a false instrument and conspiracy. She was released without bail.
Prosecutors say Barkley entered at least 10 names into the state's vaccine database while working at a Patchogue medical clinic and received payments for her work from Clifford through the services Zelle and CashApp.
Clifford has not yet been arrested, a spokesperson for the DA’s office told the Post.
Jasmine Clifford is a stripper who goes by the name '5StarJaziii' online. Clifford, of Lyndhurst, New Jersey, was charged Tuesday with offering a false instrument, criminal possession of a forged instrument and conspiracy
Nadayza Barkley is arraigned in Manhattan Criminal Court on Tuesday. She is one of 14 people arrested as part of an alleged scheme to buy and sell fake COVID-19 vaccination forms. Prosecutors say Barkley entered at least 10 names into the state's vaccine database while working at a Patchogue medical clinic and received payments for her work from Clifford through the services Zelle and CashApp
Online court records did not list lawyers for Clifford or Barkley who could comment.
Investigators say they caught out Clifford and Barkley by posing as buyers of the vaccine cards in June.
According to prosecutors, Clifford, a self-described online entrepreneur, started hawking forged Centers for Disease Control and Prevention vaccination cards through her AntiVaxMomma Instagram account in May.
A New York state police investigator who became aware of the scam a few weeks later tested it by contacting Clifford to order a fake card and to be added to the state vaccine database, prosecutors said.
In July, the investigator said in court papers, he received a package containing a CDC COVID-19 vaccination card marked with the name and date of birth he provided and a cellphone screenshot showing that the information he provided had also been added to the state database.
The undercover cop paid $200 for the card, and another $250 to be entered into the state vaccination database.
A TikTok user with the handle 'tizzyent' posted images last week of an Instagram page purported to belong to Clifford, who went by the handle '5starjazziii'
The image above shows a screenshot from the Instagram account 'AntiVaxMomma' offering fake COVID-19 vaccination cards for $200 apiece
A TikTok user with the handle 'tizzyent' posted images last week of an Instagram page purported to belong to Clifford.
He said he spoke to Clifford, who told him she was making $10,000 a week through the scam.
He posted a screenshot, allegedly of the 'Antivaxmomma' Instagram account, that shows COVID-19 vaccination cards being offered for purchase for $200 each.
The 'real cards' also have 'real lot numbers' and 'real vaccination sites,' according to the screen shot.
The TikTok user also revealed that he contacted the 'Antivaxmomma' and inquired about possibly working for her.
Thirteen alleged card purchasers have also been charged, including a man who has been accused of paying to be entered in the database. Actual COVID-19 vaccines are available free of charge.
Those who were arraigned on Tuesday include Samantha Orellana, Jennifer Oramas, Mildred Andaluz, Kareem Anderson, Tiffany Martell, Jennifer Roque Caraballo, Falisha Barnes, Stephanie Gonzalez, and Vanessa Espinales.
Five more defendants are expected to be arraigned in Manhattan in the coming days.
Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. called on Facebook, which owns Instagram, and other tech companies to crack down on vaccine card fraudsters, saying in a statement 'the stakes are too high to tackle fake vaccination cards with whack-a-mole prosecutions.'
Jennifer Roque Caraballo is arraigned in Manhattan Criminal Court on Tuesday
Kareem Anderson (above) is one of 13 people who allegedly paid $200 for the fake COVID vaccination form
Vanessa Espinales, another alleged co-conspirator, is seen in Manhattan Criminal Court on Tuesday
Tiffany Martell (left) and Jennifer Oramas (right) appear at their arraignments in Manhattan Criminal Court
Samantha Orellana (left) and Mildred Andaluz (right) appear at their arraignments in Manhattan on Tuesday
Several of the suspects are seen handcuffed at Manhattan Criminal Court on Tuesday
Facebook said that it prohibits anyone from buying or selling COVID-19 vaccine cards and that it removed Clifford's account in early August for breaking its rules.
'We will review any other accounts that might be doing the same thing,' the company said in a written statement.
'We appreciate the DA's work on this matter and will remove this content whenever we find it.'
The proliferation of fake vaccine cards is a growing concern as more places require proof of vaccination to work, eat in restaurants, and participate in day-to-day activities like going to the gym or seeing a movie.
In New York City, such a mandate is already in effect, with enforcement set to begin September 13.
According to prosecutors, Clifford, a self-described online entrepreneur, started hawking forged Centers for Disease Control and Prevention vaccination cards (like those seen above) through her AntiVaxMomma Instagram account in May
Clifford is alleged to have offered money to those who would falsely put names into New York State's vaccination database. The image above shows the 'Excelsior Pass' app, New York State's digital vaccine passport
All public school teachers and other staffers in the city are required to get their first vaccinate dose by September 27, while the state has said it is requiring vaccines for health care workers.
Other city employees must get vaccinated or tested weekly for the virus.
Colleges and universities requiring proof of COVID-19 vaccination for students to attend in-person classes have raised concerns about the easy availability of fraudulent vaccine cards through online sellers.
In May, the owner of a Northern California bar was arrested after authorities say he sold made-to-order fake COVID-19 vaccination cards for $20 each.
In June, a naturopathic physician in Northern California was arrested on charges she sold fake COVID-19 treatments and vaccination cards.
This month, after two tourists were arrested for allegedly using fake vaccine cards to travel into Hawaii, Senator Chuck Schumer, the Democrat from New York, called on federal law enforcement agencies to target online sales of fake COVID-19 vaccination cards and start a campaign making clear that forging them could land people in federal prison.
