State Police: Driver License Center Supervisor Created Fake IDs for Fugitives

A Philadelphia man working as supervisor at the in Frazer helped fugitives obtain false identity documents, according to charges filed Tuesday by Pennsylvania State Police.

Khalif Abdullah Ali, 43, was arraigned Wednesday before Judge Chester Darlington in District Court 15-2-05. He was taken to Chester County Prison after failing to post $20,000 cash bail.

According to state police:

This investigation started when the PennDOT uncovered that driver’s licenses were being issued to imposters posing as existing persons. [...] Ali was assisting individuals, who are fugitives from justice, to obtain new identities to avoid apprehension.

According to a Daily Local News article, PennDOT first grew concerned in 2010, but it wasn't until November 2011 that Ali was caught giving information and creating IDs for two men, Frank Smith Jr. and Tairek Thomas.

Police said the surveillance footage shows Ali allegedly manipulating state records at multiple coworkers’ desks to provide camera cards for the two men, allowing them to obtain driver’s licenses with their own photos but with someone else’s identity.

Both Smith and Thomas are wanted in Philadelphia for probation violations and also in Indiana for failing to appear in court to face drug-related charges.

Ali faces the following charges for offenses that occurred in October 2011, according to court records:

• Tampering with Public Records or Information (Felony 3 – 3 counts)
• Conspiracy to Commit Identity Theft (Felony 3 – 3 counts)
• Hindering Apprehension or Prosecution (Felony 3 – 3 counts)
• Computer Trespass (Felony 3 – 3 counts)

Third-degree felonies are punishable by up to 7 years of imprisonment. Ali is scheduled for a preliminary hearing before Judge Darlington on March 14.