Hi.
I'm Michael Kosta.
License plates, they help track traffic violators.
But what happens when shifty citizens
purposely cover them up?
[CLATTERING]
CREW: Ow.
Sorry.
Tonight on "Thank Me Later," we'll
meet one man who's dedicated his life
to ensure that New Yorkers are being held accountable
for traffic violations.
I went on a bike-along with this snitchilante
to investigate.
And you, heh, can thank me later.
Communities cheated out of improvements to roads, bridges,
and other infrastructure because of people covering up
their license plates.
When it goes through the camera system,
we can't pick it up.
Officials say these scofflaws cost the city more
than $100 million every year.
MICHAEL KOSTA (VOICEOVER): That's right.
Some New York drivers have started obscuring their plates
by partially covering them.
These are called ghost plates.
And one man has taken it upon himself to bust these ghost--
plates.
Hey, it's Gersh Kuntzman, still
on the criminal mischief beat.
I'm going to dedicate today to illegal covered license plates.
We got a guy with a DA placard--
I'll show you that in a minute-- and a cover.
MICHAEL KOSTA (VOICEOVER): So what
even incentivized this genuine New York freak to make
this his life's mission?
I caught him in one of the hottest zones
for ghost plates, Lower Manhattan.
The issue is if you're driving around
and you're speeding, and you're doing it with a covered plate,
you're never going to get the ticket,
and you're never even going to realize
how badly you're driving.
I want to make sure that person gets all the tickets
to which he's entitled.
What do you say to your critics who say, he's a snitch,
he's a loser, he doesn't have a life, a hobby, a family, a job,
he doesn't have friends or a social life?
What do you say to those people?
I'm not trying to get people tickets.
What I'm trying to do is show the people
who are trying to get people tickets
that their system is broken.
We're in New York City.
There's cops everywhere.
Why aren't the police officers cracking
down on these ghost plates?
The vast majority of the people
I've caught defacing or covering their plates
are cops or firefighters or court officers.
I've done about 120 of these videos
in the past three months, and I'd say about 70
of them were law enforcement officials.
The very people who shouldn't be breaking the law
are finding a way to break the law by defacing their plate
and then break the law by then speeding.
You're getting more cops tickets for speeding.
Give me some. - Yeah.
That's [BLEEP] awesome.
I mean, it's not-- the goal is not to be an asshole.
Isn't it?
The goal is to be a little bit of an asshole.
When does it end?
And does that mean you're in a ditch
somewhere with a couple of NYPD bullets in your chest?
Not that I want that.
I mean, it would make a great story.
I actually see two heroes here.
Yeah?
I see you.
Thank you.
Who is putting your life on the line.
More or less.
Enforcing law enforcement.
Hm.
And then I see another hero here, and that's me.
Hm.
Because I found you, and I'm sharing your story with others.
That's exactly right. So thank you for that.
You can thank me later.
Well, I'll thank you right now.
That's not what the segment is called.
MICHAEL KOSTA (VOICEOVER): Gersh took me on a bike-along
through Lower Manhattan to catch
some ghost plates in action.
After only a minute of biking, we hit our first offender.
This is a great one.
Is this normal wear and tear?
And the answer is obviously no.
Right.
So in a situation like this, regardless
of where we are, I mean, we're literally within inches
of a police officer--
I mean, I'm nervous right now.
You're nervous?
What-- we're in a private cop lot.
- Yeah? - And it's OK?
OK, go ahead.
Well, here's Gersh Kuntzman.
This one is just so defaced.
I couldn't resist.
I want him to get all the tickets he deserves.
So I got my paint pen, and we're just
going to fill this in for him.
And just as a courtesy to the officer,
because we are in police parking,
I'll also do the New York--
the plate cover is illegal.
Right.
You can see it.
But if you're a speed camera, which
shoots at like this angle at night,
these covers are illegal for that reason.
I'll probably just pull out my screwdriver
and do what I do best.
OK.
I just take the illegal cover,
and I'll just leave that on the front of the car--
To show that you're not stealing it.
Yeah, and I don't steal anything.
And then we more or less get out of here.
Bye.
This is now the third time I've caught this guy.
- Are you serious? - Yeah, same cop.
You've been here before?
Oh, yeah, actually twice.
But the fact that he's scraped it off again
means I got to do some more work.
There's such a important part of being a pest.
Yeah.
And actual-- and ways to actually get shit done
and to get people to respond to you, you
have to be [BLEEP] annoying.
Well, a bit of an asshole. Yeah.
And this is the third time you've got this car.
Third time.
And you're being [BLEEP] annoying to it.
MICHAEL KOSTA (VOICEOVER): After a grueling day
of catching ghost plates and meeting fans--
All right, ladies. We'll see you later.
Look me up.
I'm Ronny Chieng.
MICHAEL KOSTA (VOICEOVER): --I had
to recognize all the great work Gersh was doing
for the New York community.
Has anybody ever given you a thank you card,
a trophy, a plaque, a certificate
for the public service you're doing?
That'd be ridiculous.
No one's done that.
Well, that's going to change today.
What?
Because on behalf of The Daily Show--
Oh my God.
We got you your own ghost plate.
- This is outrageous. - That's for you, Gersh.
That's amazing.
Read it.
"To my favorite Ghost Plate Killa
When it comes to busting ghost plates, who you gonna call?
Gersh Kuntzman."
Wow.
MICHAEL KOSTA (VOICEOVER): Thank you, Gersh,
for being the annoying snitch New York City needs
to keep its streets safe.
And you can thank me later.