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Harry and Meghan’s security guards have been caught covering up their license plate in a possible breach of the law.
The couple arrived at the Ripple of Hope awards in New York Tuesday night in an SUV where part of the plate was covered over with white plastic tape, making the letters and numbers unreadable.
When a DailyMail.com photographer spotted the tape, a security guard became irate and tried to block him from taking a photo.
Once Harry and Meghan had gone inside the Hilton Midtown, the security guard took the tape off and said it was on there to stop ‘stalkers’ from the media.
But taping up part of a license plate could have breached New York City’s traffic law.
DailyMail.com spotted tape over the license plate of the black SUV Harry and Meghan were riding in to the Ripple of Hope awards Tuesday night
The plate appeared partially covered up with tape. Once the royals had gone inside, the guard took the tape off and said it was on there to stop ‘stalkers’
A violation of this section of the law is punishable by a fine of no less than $25, but no more than $200
Section 402 (1) (b) (i) of the Vehicle and Traffic Law (VTL) states: ‘Number plates shall be kept clean and in a condition so as to be easily readable and shall not be covered by glass or any plastic material’
Section 402 (1) (b) (i) of the Vehicle and Traffic Law (VTL) states: ‘Number plates shall be kept clean and in a condition so as to be easily readable and shall not be covered by glass or any plastic material.’
A violation of this section of the law is punishable by a fine of no less than $25, but no more than $200.
Fines could be higher if the purpose was to avoid paying tolls, which use cameras to scan the plate.
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Obscuring your number plate or using a fake one turns a vehicle into what is known as a ‘ghost car’ and in August New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced a crackdown on them.
He said that they were ‘by design unsafe and untraceable’.
Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Philip Banks III added: ‘Whether it’s to avoid paying tolls or an attempt to evade law enforcement, the sole purpose of products (that obscure a plate) is to skirt the law, and that’s unacceptable’.
When a DailyMail.com photographer saw the tape, one of The Sussexes’ security guards became irate and tried to block him from taking a photo
Covering a license plate could have breached New York City’s traffic law. Meghan is seen exiting the black SUV with Harry on Tuesday night
Danny Harris, executive director, Transportation Alternatives, said: ‘Obscured license plates make our streets more dangerous by enabling unchecked dangerous driving’.
In the first seven months of 2022, the New York City Police Department (NYPD) arrested over 2,700 vehicle operators driving with forged license plates.
At the Hilton, after the security guard took off the plastic, an NYPD detective told DailyMail.com there was ‘nothing illegal’ about covering the plate.
The detective said that it was done because of the fear that somebody could take a note of the plate and possibly follow Harry and Meghan, who have not obscured their number plates on previous visits to New York.
While inside the event, the Duke and Duchess of vowed their war against ‘oppression’ has only just begun.
Harry and Meghan delivered the politically-charged pre-taped remarks after being honored with an award for fighting racism in the Royal Family by the Robert F Kennedy Human Rights (RFKHR) organization, a prize previously given to Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.
Meghan also talked about her struggle with suicidal thoughts while a royal, telling the audience she ‘didn’t want to be alive anymore’ and revealing that the decision not to end her life ‘wasn’t easy’, in remarks echoing those made during her bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey.
It came just hours before the launch of the couple’s explosive Netflix series as the Royal Family braces itself for further bombshell allegations, including claims that members of the royal household briefed the Press against the duke and duchess.
