Fake IDs concern Shorewood police

SHOREWOOD – Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble were well over 21 when they went out around Bedrock, but if there had been a drinking age at the dawn of time, there would surely have also been a teenager trying to sneak into the bar.

“It’s always going to be part of the business. That’s never going to stop,” acknowledged Ken Groh, owner of Bedrocks Craft Beer and Pizza Bar in the Shorewood Plaza.

But new technologies and the online marketplace have increased the number and sophistication of fake IDs tavern owners and law enforcement have to deal with.

Shorewood Deputy Police Chief Eric Allen said village bars have seen an increased use of fake IDs in the past two years.

“And we’re seeing better fakes – high-quality fakes that are being ordered online from overseas,” Allen said.

Some of the 18-, 19- and 20-year-olds who’ve gotten caught with good fake IDs told police they were obtained from a website based in Japan. The fakes almost are indistinguishable from Illinois driver’s licenses and include the same holograms and bar codes.

“You make a few clicks, enter what you want displayed on the card, upload a picture of your face in front of a blank background and send a $100 money order. Five to seven days later you get two IDs in the mail,” Allen said. “The deal is always for two in case you lose one – like when they take it.”

One phony ID website also offers a discount to customers who refer their friends, Allen noted wryly. The site also says it is against their policy to make any identification saying someone is older than 23.

And if you can’t trust the anonymous overseas online entrepreneurs making bogus identification, who can you trust?

“Most people just change their birth year and put in all of their actual information since that’s easiest to remember, so they’re on a list that’s going to be sold for identity theft,” Allen said.

Groh, who has owned Bedrocks for nine years, estimates he’s confiscated 40 fake IDs in the last year.

“And I’m just one bar,” Groh said.

Allen said Skooters, another bar in Shorewood Plaza, has also seen an increase in fake ID use and both businesses are using “state-of-the-art equipment” to catch those with fake IDs at the door.

Bedrocks’ doorman uses a magnifying glass and blacklight tool to examine licenses. The zigzag “Illinois” on the front of the most recently confiscated fake glows much brighter than a legitimate driver’s license.

“That’s about the only [flaw] on this one,” Groh said. “They just can’t get that right. Sometimes we’ve put the blacklight on and the whole front turns white.”

If bar employees believe they’re seeing a fake ID, it’s kept and turned over to police. Anyone who wants it back is told the police will arrive to run it through their system and make sure it’s legitimate.

“Nobody ever sticks around for that,” Groh said. “We’ve been offered money. We’ve been offered sexual favors, but they’re not getting in and they’re not getting it back. I’m a business owner – there’s too much liability.”

Shorewood has a $750 fine for businesses that serve underage patrons, and using a fake ID is a criminal misdemeanor. Presenting false information to obtain legitimate ID from the Department of Motor Vehicles is a felony.

“I know there have been [underage] customers who haven’t been caught ... somebody who looks like their brother and shows a [real] license,” Groh said. “But it’s something we’ll always have to check.”