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Mexican tricksters use elderly disguise to get Covid vaccine

MEXICO CITY — Two Mexican men in their 30s managed to get the coronavirus vaccine in the capital by disguising themselves as senior citizens, but were later caught, the authorities said Wednesday (April 7).

A nurse prepares a dose of AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine at the vaccination centre set up at the Autonomous University of Guadalajara in Zapopan, Jalisco state, Mexico on April 6, 2021.

A nurse prepares a dose of AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine at the vaccination centre set up at the Autonomous University of Guadalajara in Zapopan, Jalisco state, Mexico on April 6, 2021.

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MEXICO CITY — Two Mexican men in their 30s managed to get the coronavirus vaccine in the capital by disguising themselves as senior citizens, but were later caught, the authorities said Wednesday (April 7).

With their hair and eyebrows coloured white, the men visited a vaccination centre for over 60s wearing masks and plastic face shields, the city mayor's office said.

Both presented false identity documents and received the vaccine, but their plan fell apart when they had to speak with a worker at the centre afterward.

"A colleague realised the voice was not that (of an old man), and that was when she called the authorities," Mexico City official Cristina Cruz was quoted by the UNOTV news site as saying.

The imposters face charges of identity theft, she said.

The country of 126 million, whose official Covid-19 death toll of 205,000 is the world's third-highest, has doled out nearly 10 million vaccine doses to medical workers and the elderly. AFP

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