A flea market vendor was arrested at Tri-County in Levittown last week for allegedly creating and selling phony identification cards/documents. According to District Attorney Denis Dillon's office, police arrested a 24-year-old male, a resident of Flushing, Queens, and charged him with one count of forgery in the second degree, a class D felony punishable by up to seven years in prison.

Dillon explained the steps the district attorney's office took in solving this crime, after a complaint was placed by a mother whose son apparently purchased a fake ID from the vendor last year.

"In May, 2001, the mother of a 14-year-old boy filed a complaint with the attorney general's office alleging that her son had purchased a phony Queen College ID card in December, 2000 from a vendor called 'Sign the Best' at Tri-County Flea Market. The attorney general's office subsequently referred the complaint to our office, and we undertook an investigation," Dillon said.

"On January 19, 2002, an investigator, acting in an undercover capacity, sought to purchase a driver's license and a college ID card from 'Sign the Best.' The defendant quoted the investigator a total price of $65 for the two documents and, using computer equipment and a digital camera, proceeded to create a phony New Jersey driver's license and a phony Fordham University ID card. The investigator paid the defendant $65 in cash, and received the two phony IDs in return. The transactions were videotaped by our investigators."

After being arraigned on March 1 in First District Court in Hempstead, the defendant was released on his recognizance, promising to appear in court again on March 12 for conferencing.

Dillon's office noted that the charges made against the defendant are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.