Fakes generally come from China and Indonesia (photo courtesy Chicago Tribune)

By Jim Anderson

Cops will be on the lookout this weekend for underage drinkers using fake, borrowed or stolen identification.

Secretary of State Jesse White announced the enforcement effort on Wednesday.

“We’re stepping up our efforts statewide this weekend, and more importantly during this holiday season, to curb the use of fake, borrowed or stolen IDs,” White said.

Pete Piazza, deputy director of the Secretary of State Police, said his department and local police will be involved, and undercover officers will be used.

“We’ll be out with different departments around the state. We go to the hot spots where the kids are gonna go,” Piazza said.

Stolen IDs are not much of a problem, according to Secretary of State Police. Fake IDs are a significant problem. Secretary of State Police investigator Jeff Jacobs says there are good ones that are manufactured overseas, and are fakes of other states’ IDs, intended not to arouse suspicion here. They sell for $75 to $100 each online. According to Jacobs, they’re typically manufactured in China or Indonesia.

Police confiscated 1,000 IDs last year. Those caught using a fake, borrowed or stolen ID can face fines up to $25,000, jail time, and loss of their real driver’s license.