A woman attempting to use a fake COVID-19 vaccine card with the shot maker listed as “Maderna,” instead of Moderna, was arrested in Hawaii and is facing up to $5,000 in fines and potential jail time.
Chloe Mrozak was arrested at the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu on Saturday for violating Hawaii Gov. David Ige’s emergency proclamation, Gary H. Yamashiroya, spokesperson for the Department of the Attorney General, confirmed to USA TODAY.
She was “attempting to bypass the state’s quarantine requirement by submitting a falsified vaccination card,” Yamashiroya said.
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Hawaii has the most stringent COVID entry requirements in the country under the Safe Travels program introduced in October. To bypass a mandatory 10-day quarantine, travelers must show proof of vaccination or present a negative COVID-19 test taken no more than three days before arrival.
Ian Scheuring, content distribution director at Hawaii News Now posted an image of the fake vaccine card on Twitter.
The fine for falsifying proof of testing or vaccination proof for travel in Hawaii carries a fine of up to $5,000 and/or prison time for up to one year for each count.
“Our department will prosecute these crimes to the fullest extent provided by the law,” Yamashiroya said.
Mrozak was unable to post bail – which was set at $2,000 – and was placed in custody, pending a Monday court appearance. The case continued Wednesday for the waiving or demanding of a jury trial.
“The Department of the Attorney General is committed to vigorous enforcement of the Governor’s Emergency Proclamation,” Yamashiroya said. “Everyone should know that falsified CDC cards are a federal offense and in some states, it is a separate state charge.”
Yamashiroya said Mrozak was charged with one count of “Hawaii Revised Statutes 127A-29 Violation of Emergency Proclamation.”
Mrozak arrived in Oahu on Aug. 23, according to Hawaii News Now, and presented her vaccine card which read “Maderna” instead of “Moderna” leaving authorities with an inkling that something might be off, prompting an investigation.
The Department of the Attorney General declined to share an image of the vaccination card, but the images found online list her place of vaccination as Delaware with the National Guard administering the dose of “Maderna” to Mrozak. When investigators called the state, there was no record of her vaccination, according to Hawaii News Now.
Mrozak also left the airport having listed Holiday Inn Express in Waikiki as the location at which she would stay while in the Aloha state but her reservation couldn’t be confirmed, Hawaii News Now reported.
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Mrozak isn’t the first tourist to have been arrested for presenting false information in relation to COVID-19.
Last month, two more travelers to Hawaii were arrested at the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu, for fraudulent vaccine proof. It was the first case pursued by the attorney general’s office.
And in July, two travelers trying to enter Toronto from the U.S. were each fined nearly $20,000 Canadian dollars after providing false information related to proof of vaccination and pre-departure coronavirus tests, according to Canadian officials.
Contributing: Bailey Schulz, Dawn Gilbertson, USA TODAY
