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Police pulled his car over Tuesday morning for a routine traffic stop. He said he had left his driver's license at home. When asked, the Hispanic man confirmed it was an International Driving Document.
Police are warning residents that such licenses are part of a scam foisting a comparatively expensive document as a legitimate driver's license.
"Let there be no mistake, these documents aren't worth the paper they're written on for the purpose of driving in the state of South Carolina," Orangeburg Department of Public Safety Capt. Mike Adams said. "They're not valid anywhere in the United States for that matter."
About two weeks ago, ODPS officers began encountering Hispanics using what Adams described as a "so-called International Driving Document."
"Several individuals have been stopped for routine traffic stops, driver's checkpoints," Adams said. "It was determined very quickly that these International Driving Documents were not legal in the United States for driving an automobile."
Lance Cpl. Dwight Green of the S.C. Highway Patrol said that in order for an individual to obtain a valid South Carolina driver's license, he or she must prove their residency in this state, meet minimum age and physical requirements.
"And, of course, you must be able to pass a road test by a certified DMV road test examiner," Green said.
Orangeburg police officers have encountered about a dozen of the bogus documents, "but we believe there are probably several hundred out there, if not more," Adams said.
"There is a $175 fee to obtain these driving documents, during which the person is photographed, an application is taken, which is then forwarded to a location out of state," Adams said. "This application is then processed and given to the individual."
Working as an unofficial liaison between the Hispanic community and the ODPS for the past year, Public Safety Officer Efrain Arce said that to make the rip-off worse, the same fake document can be obtained from a Web site for far less -- $60.
Adams said the Web site and its proprietors is also being investigated by other agencies.
Orangeburg's problem is heightened because someone locally is acting as a door-to-door salesman, Arce said. These salespersons pay the Web site fee of $60 out of the $175 fee, Arce said, and pocket the remainder.
"That's a week's pay for these people," Arce said.
A typical South Carolina driver's license is valid for four years. Not so with the deceptive documents being peddled, Adams said.
"This worthless document is supposedly good for one year, at which time is renewed for a $30 fee," he said. "So, they get you coming and going. These individuals are being preyed upon by unscrupulous persons with the promise of driving privileges."
Examining the document carefully could raise questions as to its legitimacy. Several misspellings can be found on the actual license and its enclosure. The document's cadet gray cover boasts of 260 countries that accept the license, but inside only 190 countries are listed. Also, the document has an approval statement by U.S. President Harry S. Truman.
But those discrepancies may not be realized by a target group that has difficulty with the Spanish language as well as English, Arce said.
"They can't even read the document," Arce said.
Driver's licenses that are accepted as valid in South Carolina are those issued legally by any state's Division of Motor Vehicles. Licenses issued by other states are also valid.
Others include a French driver's license, Adams said, because a standing agreement between the two countries allows each to recognize the validity of a driver's license issued and used in either country.
The American Automobile Association has a program for obtaining a driver's license that can be used in the United Kingdom. A motor club in the Great Britain has a similar program for use here, Adams said.
When first obtaining a South Carolina driver's license, a resident must present a birth certificate, Social Security card and another form of identification.
The International Driving Document, in particular with migrant workers, is attractive because of the difficulty in producing all the legal paperwork, Green said.
In those instances, a valid visa or passport is required for a South Carolina driver's license.
"A lot of them here don't have that paperwork in line and that's the problem they're running in to," Green said.
Police are currently investigating the local distribution source of the invalid documents, asking that if anyone having purchased an International Driving Document contact law enforcement immediately.
Anyone caught using an International Driving Document as a driver's license will be charged as if they have no driver's license.
"They could wind up serving jail time in some cases," Adams said.
One woman told police that when she bought her license, she "was told to say she bought it from someone in Charleston," Arce said.
The Orangeburg Department of Public Safety can be reached at 803-533-5907. PSO Arce can be requested if a translator is required.
T&D Staff Writer Richard Walker can be reached by e-mail at rwalker@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5516.