UMd. Student Indicted for Producing, Selling Fake Driver's Licenses

A 20-year-old University of Maryland student could face a maximum sentence of more than 200 years in prison and face a forfeiture of $12,500 for accusations that he allegedly produced and sold fake driver’s licenses while he was a student.

On Monday, a federal grand jury indicted Theodore "Teddy" Steven Michaels, of Potomac, Md., for his work with a co-conspirator from October to December 2009 where they are said to have produced and sold fraudulent Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania driver’s licenses to individuals under the age of 21, claiming they were older than 21. The indictment, although not a finding of guilt, formally accuses Michaels of the crime.

Michaels had his initial appearance in the U.S. District Court in Greenbelt on Wednesday and was released on his own recognizance, said Marcia Murphy, the public affairs specialist for the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland. 

Michaels allegedly informed friends from his Montgomery County private high school who were attending UMd. and other universities that he was selling false driver’s licenses featuring holograms that appeared to be genuine, and magnetic strips encoded with data that could be read by “swipe” card readers, according to information the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland released about the indictment.

Michaels allegedly charged $100 to $170 for each license he sold and offered a free license to anyone who referred five other applicants to him. The applicants allegedly provided photographs and other information they wanted to fake IDs to include, such as names, addresses, dates of birth and other identifying information.

Michaels and the co-conspirator then are said to have made the fraudulent licenses in their dorm room using an identification card printer and encoder, a thermal printer used to create false holograms of state seals and other tools, according to the 16-count indictment.

The indictment seeks forfeiture of $12,500 — the alleged proceeds of the illegal activity as well as the tools used to make the licenses.

Michaels also faces a total maximum sentence of 230 years in prison — five years in prison for the conspiracy, 15 years in prison on each of seven counts for the production, and seven counts for the transfer of fraudulent identification documents. There is an additional 15 years in prison for possessing document-making tools.

Michaels' next court hearing has not yet been scheduled, Murphy said.

Michaels is still enrolled at University of Maryland, College Park as a senior majoring in accounting, finance and economics, said Associate Director of University Communications Lee Tune.

This story has been corrected. An earlier version wrongly stated Michaels' status with the University of Maryland. He is currently enrolled at the University of Maryland. We regret the error.