Fake licence plates fooling photo radar, and even Calgary police

Some people on Calgary roads will go to any lengths to avoid a speeding ticket, even creating home-made licence plates.

Calgary police say fake plates are rare, but occasionally they pull someone over with an illegitimate plate.

"In one case we're aware ofthere was a plate that was made out of cardboard and it was a pretty good knock-off.But it was made out of cardboard and then the motorist covered it with a plastic covertoprotect it from the weather," saidSgt. Paul Stacey.

There are many reasons why people make fake licence plates, whether it's to drive stolen vehicles or simply because people can't afford the licensing and registration, he says.

There was a plate that was made out of cardboard and it was a pretty good knock-off.-Traffic Staff Sgt. Paul Stacey

"An officer pulled over a motorcycle that had a fake plate on itand after the motorist left with his wheelbarrow full of tickets and we took his bike, what he said to the officer was, 'I'm not even going to get my bike backbecause I can't afford it, which is why I made the fake plate, because I couldn't t even afford the licence or the registration,'" said Stacey.

Inadvertently caught up in the fraud

Sometimes, people with legitimate plates and registrations get caught up inadvertently in the fraud.

CBC'sMeg Wilcoxreceived a speeding ticket in the mail. Hersinking feeling of dread that she'd been caught with a leadfoot turned into surprise when the radar photo showedher plate but on the wrong car.

"Ithad all of my personal information my name, licence andplates were all right,but the car was a white Cadillacand I drive a tiny red hatchback," she said.

"So definitely not my car. But when I looked at the photothat white sedan had the same plate number."

When Wilcoxcalled Calgary police,they agreed to withdraw the ticket. As a journalist at CBC, she decided to look into the issue.

Finding fakes can boil down to luck

Stacey couldn't explain the circumstances that led to Wilcox's speeding ticket without tracking down the white Cadillac with the fake plates and talking to the driver.

The CPS processes thousands of tickets a year and each one is looked at with "a finetoothedcombbefore it goes out, and that was the case in Meg's case as well," he said.

"Ithink we have some pretty good checks and balances in place, butoccasionallyyou're going to run across this and when it's brought toour attention,we'llinvestigate it."

Tracking down the fakes often justboils down to luck, he says.

"We've had lot of times there are poor knock-offs, and they're easier to spot."

But he is warningpeople against saying alicence plate is faketo get out of speeding tickets because it is illegal.

"Ifpeople think this is a good way to get out of enforcement tickets, and if you call and you say thatwasn't my plate ... and it turns out that's not true, you go from just having to pay a fine for a photo enforcement ticket to facing a criminal charge of public mischief,"said Stacey.

"If you're making up fake plates, you're probably not the best driver either and you're eventually going to get caught," he said.