26 People Arrested for Social Security Theft

A wide-ranging investigation into the sale of fake Social Security cards to undocumented workers started when state Department of Environmental Protection officers examined a company that allegedly was stealing aquatic plants from state-owned land and selling them.

Investigators found that one of the employees had been able gain employment using a counterfeit card with stolen Social Security numbers.

Teaming up with the Department of Financial Services, DEP officers subsequently found 115 undocumented people across the state using cards with a Social Security number stolen from a 10-year-old Florida girl. They bought the cards for $30 to $300 a piece.

These people who purchased the social secuirty card were using it to get jobs.

Four of the people were arrested at their jobs in Palm Beach County, five were arrested in Broward County, one was arrested in Seminole County, and sixteen were arrested at Bates Plants, a Fort Pierce nursery and landscaping business.

Currently, Florida ranks fifth in the nation for the highest rate of ID theft. With just a social security card, someone can open a bank account, obtain a driver's license, apply for credit cards, and the like.

The 26 face charges that include using a false ID to gain employment or workers' compensation, which is a state felony punishable by up to five years in prison.