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Parking Ticket Payment Scam Busted
By
Jen Chung
Published Nov 30, 2006
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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By
Jen Chung
Published Nov 30, 2006
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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For the "Too Good to Be True, So It's Just Not True" file: The NY Times reports that 23 year old Daniel Markovitz "told people that he could get their parking fines reduced, saying that he knew someone in the Parking Violations Bureau or that he worked for a Web site that helped adjudicate tickets." Markovitz collected up to $780 from each person and did pay off fines for 53 parking tickets (which totaled $4,700). Except he used stolen credit cards to do so and making a profit of $2,000.
Though Markovitz was charged with identity theft, grand larceny and fraud, his lawyer says his client will "soon be shown to be a victim in this case himself." How that will happen, it's unclear.
The Independent Budget Office found that you have a better chance of beating your parking ticket if you fight it in person. Like the guy who used Google Maps to show the ticket he got was totally stupid! In October, the Post had a story about former NYC parking ticket judge Haskell Nussbaum (whose book about beating parking tickets will be out next month); he also recommends that people fight their tickets in court and says not to bring the actual ticket to court - apparently the scans of the ticket are so unreadable, it may be grounds for an immediate dismissal!
Photograph by Triborough on Flickr
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The Independent
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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