Device Helped Florida Man Ingeniously, Illegally Avoid Paying Tolls

Sometimes genius and morality aren’t mutually exclusive.

And they’re certainly not for Joshua Concepcion-West, who was caught by a state trooper in Orlando, Fla. using an ingenious, but illegal, device to avoid paying tolls.

West installed a remote-controlled curtain on his the license plate frame of his fifth-generation Honda Civic that could shield his license plate from toll cameras, according to WFTS-TV. He was arrested by Florida Highway Patrol and charged with a felony for petit theft and cheating or gross fraud. The ensuing legal process is sure to cost West a lot more than a $1.25 toll.

Because West’s plate was concealed whenever he passed through a toll, police are finding it difficult to quantify how long this went on and how much payment was eluded.

If you do quick Google search for “toll cameras,” you can find a host of products designed to conceal license plates, or make them appear distorted in pictures. But police reportedly said Concepcion-West’s method for avoiding tolls was one of the more elaborate they’ve ever seen.