BROOKLYN, NY – Two individuals were sentenced to prison for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute fraudulent COVID-19 Vaccination Cards.
Jia Liu has been sentenced to 21 months in prison by United States District Judge Diane Gujarati for his involvement in a scheme to steal, forge, and distribute fraudulent COVID-19 Vaccination Cards. His co-defendant, Steven Rodriguez, a nurse from Long Island, received a 30-month prison sentence on June 9, 2023, for his participation in the same conspiracy. Both pleaded guilty in April 2023 to conspiring to defraud and obstruct the United States’ response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Breon Peace, emphasized the danger posed by the defendants’ actions during a critical time in the health crisis, underlining the commitment of his office to prosecute COVID-19 fraud aggressively. The sentences aim to deter similar crimes, prioritizing public health safety over individual gain.
Court documents reveal that starting in May 2021, Liu and Rodriguez conspired to sell and distribute fake vaccination cards to unvaccinated individuals, along with offering false entries into government immunization databases. The duo employed various methods to avoid detection, including the use of code words and encrypted communication.
Liu was also found to have targeted members of the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, distributing counterfeit vaccination cards to assist in evading military vaccination mandates. His actions were part of a broader attempt to undermine public health efforts during the pandemic.