Disorderly conduct pleas in fake Covid vaccination card investigation
Jan. 26—Two West Seneca men pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct charges following an investigation into fake COVID-19 vaccination cards sent from China.
Kurt T. Surprenant, 30, of West Seneca, pleaded guilty Thursday before Cheektowaga Town Court Justice John J. Wanat to one count of disorderly conduct. His co-defendant, Paul Daley, 40, of West Seneca, also pleaded guilty to one count of disorderly conduct. They were both sentenced to a one-year conditional discharge and ordered to perform 20 hours of community service.
An investigation began after the U.S. Department of Homeland Security intercepted a package from China, addressed to Surprenant, that contained blank COVID-19 vaccination cards. Investigators conducted a controlled delivery of the package to his address and obtained a search warrant for his home.
During the course of the investigation, Surprenant was found to have obtained a falsified vaccination card from his friend Daley. Daley, an officer with the West Seneca Police Department, was off-duty at the time of the incident. The investigation determined that the falsified card was never used.
