Police Discovered 62 Fake COVID Vaccination Cards In CVS Employee's Car

A CVS employee on Long Island, New York, was recently arrested after police found 62 fake COVID-19 vaccination cards in his car, all of which had been pilfered from his workplace.

Source: Noam Galai / Getty

21-year-old Zachary Honig got arrested on Tuesday in East Garden City when officers looking for drug offenders spotted him sitting in his car with the engine running, according to reports from WABC. The officers proceeded to search his car, which is when they found a controlled substance along with a stash of stolen vaccination cards.

According to the report, Honig admitted to the authorities that he had taken the cards from his employer. He also said he had sold some cards to students and was intending to share the remainder with family and friends. Following his arrest, the 21-year-old is facing eight charges, including possession of a forged instrument, criminal possession of a controlled substance, criminal possession of a weapon, and petit larceny.

During a press conference, officers revealed that eight vaccination cards were pre-filled with information, leaving only the “name” section empty, with 54 others being left blank. Some of the cards were also marked with dates in June, while others were backdated to reflect an earlier vaccination date.

“His intent was to share them with family members and friends that they can go into venues and possibly even use them at school when they go back in September,” Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder told WABC. “You can’t have scams like this occurring. The idea of getting us all back to normal is that when you walk into a place and they’re requiring that card, you want to make sure that card is factual.”

According to reports from Insider, CVS fired Zachary Honig after his arrest.

“We’re cooperating with the Nassau County Police Department’s investigation of an employee at our CVS Pharmacy store on Hempstead Turnpike in Levittown,” a company representative said in a statement. “Following his arrest, we took immediate steps to terminate his employment as his alleged activity conflicts with our values, our policies, and our commitment to safe, secure vaccination protocols.”