Quebec will revoke fake vaccine passports, health minister says amid anti-corruption probe
COVID-19 vaccine passports found to be faked will be revoked and criminal charges could be laid against people who bought them and produced them, Quebec’s health minister said Thursday amid an ongoing anti-corruption probe into alleged fraud schemes to evade the public health measure.
“The people who, unfortunately, did this … it’s very dangerous what they’ve done; to let unvaccinated people go to places that were reserved for vaccinated people,” said Minister Christian Dubé Thursday during a news conference on the COVID-19 situation in Quebec.
Quebec’s anti-corruption squad announced Wednesday it is investigating “various fraudulent schemes” to make and distribute fake vaccine passports. The Unité permanente anticorruption (UPAC) said it is working with the Ministry of Health and Social Services, municipal police forces, and the Quebec Crown prosecutor to identify potential violations of the law.
The unit said it wanted to keep the alleged schemes confidential “so as not to prejudice the gathering of evidence and the reputation of those who may be involved.”
“I used to be auditor, right, so I can tell you right now people are looking to see how many passports were issued,” Dubé said Thursday. “The UPAC is doing fantastic work and when we’re able to, we will revoke the passports.”
In the near future, once restaurants reopen their dining rooms in the province, they will be able to flag a fraudulent vaccine passport and prevent the user from entering the business, the health minister added.
Criminal charges could be laid not only for individuals responsible for making the fake passports, but also those who buy them, the province says. People found guilty could face charges under the Criminal Code or the Public Health Act.
Mathieu Galarneau, a spokesperson for UPAC, told CTV News that the agency has received “a large number of reports about false vaccine passports in the past few months, since late fall.”
He would not confirm a La Presse report that said “thousands” of reported fake passports are being investigated by UPAC.
“We are looking into reports of serious amounts of false vaccine passports,” Galarneau said.
“Given the context of public health guidelines [over COVID-19] and the confidence people place in the places they can access with the passports, it is important that these [fraudulent passports] be thoroughly investigated.”
He said UPAC is considering all types of possible scams, including those involving a network of people.
Anyone with information regarding the production or distribution of fake vaccine passports is asked to contact UPAC by calling 1-844-541-UPAC or by filling out a confidential form on its website.
Galarneau added that although the form is currently only available in French the agency is currently working to make its website more bilingual.
The warning from the anti-corruption body comes one day after Quebec made the vaccine passport mandatory to enter government-run liquor (SAQ) and cannabis (SQDC) stores — a measure Dubé has said could be expanded to more public settings in order to drive up vaccination rates amid the Omicron wave of the pandemic.
The vaccine passport has already been applied to restaurants, bars, cinemas, places of worship, outdoor festivals, and several other locations.
It’s not the first time authorities in Quebec have opened an investigation into alleged fraudulent vaccine passport schemes.
CTV News reported in October that the health ministry had to make tweaks to its vaccine verification process after people were able to bypass the system using phoney immunization documents from Ontario.
CTV was able to contact sellers involved in the operation that were offering fake vaccine passports for as much as $500.
At the time, Montreal police said they were investigating at least 10 cases of fake documents related to the vaccine passport.
LISTEN ON CJAD 800 RADIO: Tom Mulcair: The anti-fraud squad and anti-vaccine-pass fraudsters
With files from CTV Montreal's Max Harrold
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter banned from NBA
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has been handed a lifetime ban from The National Basketball Association (NBA) following an investigation which found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, the league says.
BREAKING Former Air Canada employees among suspects identified in gold heist at Pearson airport: police
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
Earthquake jolts southern Japan
An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 hit southern Japan late on Wednesday, said the Japan Meteorological Agency, without issuing a tsunami warning.
MPs summon ArriveCan contractor to the House to be admonished in rare parliamentary display
Enacting an extraordinarily rarely used parliamentary power, MPs have summoned an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons on Wednesday afternoon to be admonished publicly for failing to answer their questions.
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
Gas prices across Ontario expected to climb to levels not seen since 2022, analyst says
Ontario is going to see a big jump at the pumps later this week as gas prices in the province hit levels not seen in nearly two years, according to one industry analyst.
Ancient skeletons unearthed in France reveal Mafia-style killings
More than 5,500 years ago, two women were tied up and probably buried alive in a ritual sacrifice, using a form of torture associated today with the Italian Mafia, according to an analysis of skeletons discovered at an archaeological site in southwest France.
Paul McCartney and John Lennon’s sons have released a single together
A new Lennon and McCartney collaboration is the last thing anybody expected.
Some millennials say federal budget was 'a letdown' amid cost of living struggles
It’s a picture-perfect scene: Adam and Maria Reynolds are playing with their daughters inside their Port Coquitlam, B.C. home. Watching them together, you might not realize the Reynolds household is stretched to its limit.