Ingenious Toll Cheat Nabbed For the 2nd Time at NJ Crossing

WEEHAWKEN — For the second time this year, a New Jersey man has been arrested on charges of avoiding tolls on the George Washington Bridge.

According to Port Authority police, on Friday, Sept. 22, the alleged toll cheat, Adam Jimenez apparently used a device to block out his license plate so that he would not have to pay for the toll at the GWB in Weehawken.

Police officers spotted Jimenez using what looked like a plate-flipping device as he traveled through the toll plaza.

Jimenez faces charges of theft of service, tampering with public records, possession of burglar’s tools, and possession of fraudulent documents. He was also issued summonses for unclear plates, counterfeiting or using other markers, and failure to exhibit documents.

How much in tolls was evaded

It’s not clear how much in tolls he evaded. Port Authority officials told us Jimenez evaded tolls on several toll roads, and they are working to figure out how much he got away with recently.

But this was not the first time Jimenez was arrested for trying to avoid paying the bridge’s toll. In February 2023, he was arrested by PAPD after they saw a remote-controlled electronic curtain to cover his license plate.

In that incident, Jimenez was arrested and charged with theft of service, tampering with public records, possession of burglar’s tools, and was also issued a summons for unclear plates.

Toll evasion is a costly problem

Just this year, there have been 16 instances at the GWB where Port Authority police have arrested or issued summonses to drivers using electronic devices intended to obscure license plates to avoid paying tolls, officials said.

“Our message to toll cheats is clear: break the law and we’ll catch you. Tolls fund the critical infrastructure that stitch our region together, and free riders will not be allowed to skate by,” wrote Port Authority spokesperson, Lenis Valens.

Other past toll cheats

In January 2017, Bertha D. Moreno, 62, of West New York, was pulled over and arrested at the Lincoln Tunnel toll plaza in Weehawken. The woman, with 653 known E-Z Pass violations, was accused of failing to pay $50,990 in tolls.

In May 2022, Quintin T. White, 40, of Brooklyn was arrested at the Holland Tunnel for using a mechanical device to cover the rear license plate of the black BMW with no front license plate he was driving on the Jersey side of the tunnel. He owed nearly $25,000.

In 2022, the Port Authority issued close to 5,000 summonses as part of a coordinated crackdown on toll evasion. As a result, authorities recovered more than $21 million in past-due tolls.