Former Seminole County Tax Collector accused of making fake IDs with customers’ information

IDs were supposed to be shredded, authorities say

SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. – During his time as Seminole County tax collector, Joel Greenberg used information from surrendered driver’s licenses to make fake IDs with his picture on it, according to a federal indictment.

The document filed Wednesday includes earlier allegations against Greenberg in which he’s accused of making fake social media accounts in order to start rumors about his political opponent and paint the victim as a white supremacist, as well as the new allegations.

Greenberg resigned from his position as Seminole County tax collector in June, shortly after his arrest on federal stalking charges.

[RELATED: Seminole County tax collector resigns after indictment on federal stalking charges | Former Seminole County tax collector pleads not guilty to federal stalking charges]

The report claims that some customers came to Greenberg’s office to surrender their driver’s license -- for instance, when they were receiving a replacement or renewal -- with the understanding that their old ID would be shredded.

Instead, federal prosecutors allege that Greenberg used the information from at least two IDs, one from Florida and one from Puerto Rico, to create a fake driver’s license that would have his picture on it along with the victims’ names, date of birth and other pertinent information.

“Joel Micah Greenberg used the surrendered drivers licenses that he had taken to cause fake driver licenses to be produced that had his photograph but the personal information of the victims whose driver licenses he had taken,” prosecutors wrote.

[READ MORE: Seminole County tax collector accused of stalking political opponent indicted on federal charges]

The first fake ID was made between Sept. 21, 2018 and June 23 while the second was made between Dec. 4, 2019 and June 23, according to the indictment.

Greenberg is facing additional charges of production of identification and false identification documents and aggravated identity theft.

In the federal stalking case, Greenberg has already entered a plea of not guilty. He was granted a conditional release last month.


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