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SEIZED . . . (from left) Lorraine Kenny, PC Zahid Iqbal and Adele Lord with some of the fake IDs in Oldham town centre

Fake ID swoop halts under-age drinkers

Under-age drinkers have been warned to stay away from Oldham after police seized more than 80 fake IDs in a town centre crackdown.

The falsified passports and driving licences were seized by door staff at nightspots Aruba, Bamboogie, Liquid and Wahoo and handed over to police.

Insp Melita Worswick is urging young people to use the council’s Justi:ID proof-of-age card instead.

She added: “Licensed premises are pro-actively challenging people about their age and refusing them entry in an attempt to take the lead in tackling this problem.

“It’s great to see how vigilant bar staff are being when on the lookout for false ID.

“We will continue to work with the pubs and clubs to call time on underage drinking and send a warning that carrying fake ID has real consequences, including fines, exclusion from pubs and clubs or even imprisonment.

“I would also encourage parents to help us by making sure they know where their children are in the evening and what they are doing.”

The StreetSafe Identif:ID cards which were introduced in 2006 include a picture and cost youngsters £2. They are available for anyone aged 18 to 25 from The Centre on Union Street, Oldham.

Inspector Worswick added: “By encouraging people to purchase these cards we are actively discouraging them from bringing out their passports and driving licences which if lost or stolen will cost more to replace and may be used to steal their identity and commit further offences.”

Lorraine Kenny, anti-social behaviour team leader at Community Safety Services, said: “We will do everything we can to protect young people from harm and this includes restricting their access to alcohol.

“Alcohol influences behaviour, which can result in young people becoming involved in criminal activity because they have had too much to drink.

“For most teenagers this type of behaviour is completely out of character, but this is not an excuse and they will face the consequences of their actions.

“Unfortunately, what they see as a bit of fun can ultimately have a negative impact on the rest of their lives.”