Feds intercept $1.4M in counterfeit PA vehicle inspection decals from Israel

Federal authorities say they recently seized 22,000 counterfeit Pennsylvania vehicle inspection stickers that were shipped from Israel to an address in Philadelphia.

Officials with U.S. Customs and Border Protection say those stickers would have been worth just over $1.4 million, had they been authentic.

CBP officers encountered the fake inspection stickers in two separate shipments – 10,000 in a parcel that arrived on November 26th and 12,000 that arrived on December 9th.

Authorities suspected the stickers to be fraudulent and both shipments were detained; officials in the Keystone State verified that they were phony.

Pennsylvania law requires vehicles to be inspected annually to ensure compliance with minimum mechanical, safety, and emissions standards. Those wishing to not make potentially costly repairs to failing vehicles may resort to buying fake inspection stickers. If caught, they could be fined up to $500 and face potential time in prison.

Cleatus P. Hunt, Jr., CBP's Area Port Director for the Area Port of Philadelphia said in a press release, "Unscrupulous actors peddling fraudulent vehicle inspection stickers create a very serious public safety concern. Fake inspection stickers mask unsafe motor vehicles that place all motorists on our roadways in harm."

No arrests were made in connection to the fake stickers.