On February 19, Shantou TV Station in Guangdong Province reported that a woman by the last name of Li had recently been caught using a fake license plate she purchased online. Not only that, but the license plate had been bought at the low, low price of RMB125 on Taobao, which is notorious for selling just about everything.
Li, who works in Shenzhen, had rented a black Audi there and driven it to Shantou. Then she switched the original plate with the one she bought on Taobao, apparently in an attempt to avoid being charged for traffic violations. It would have been quite a steal if she hadn't ended up being caught and fined RMB5,000, in addition to receiving other disciplinary actions.
A look at Li's online order for the fake license plate (close-up below).
Traffic police in Shantou's Longhu District picked up on the fraud while on patrol. Noticing that there was something funny about the license plate on the Audi, they ran a check and discovered that the plate number was already registered to another car, a silver Volkswagen Jetta.
They brought Li back to the station for questioning, where she admitted to purchasing a fake plate. According to police, she will receive the requisite legal punishment for her crime: a RMB5,000 fine, 15 days of detention, and 12 points deducted from her drivers license.
Currently, her case is still undergoing further investigation.
An officer in the Longhu Traffic Police Force advised drivers not to fake their plates or their licenses in order to evade traffic violation charges, as they would eventually have to "pay a heavy price."
Li's stunt is similar, if less daring in scope, to a recent incident where two Maseratis in Shenzhen were found to have the exact appearance, down to the license plate number. One of the car owners is suspected of forging documentation for a smuggled vehicle, and is being investigated by local police.
[Images via Shantou TV Station]
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