HOUSTON – Emmanuel Padilla Reyes, 35, was sentenced to five years in federal prison and ordered to pay $22 million for his role in a large-scale scheme involving fake Texas temporary license plates.
Authorities say the scheme helped criminals evade law enforcement by using counterfeit paper tags sold by Reyes. The operation involved fake car dealerships issuing and selling at least 550,000 fake paper plates nationwide.
Cameras were not allowed inside the courtroom, but Reyes apologized for his actions and asked for mercy from the judge. His apology came shortly after Tawny Solbrig, mother and advocate, confronted him.
“I didn’t know I wanted to look him in the face until I got there,” Solbrig said. “And then I wanted him to look in the face because I know he never has heard our son’s name. He has never heard Terrin Solbrig. He probably didn’t know anything about it until today.”
Solbrig and her husband Stewart have been outspoken advocates against crimes related to fake temporary license plates. Their 18-year-old son, Terrin, died in a 2020 car accident caused by a driver with fake tags.
Stewart Solbrig said, “He had just graduated high school and was going out with some friends to ride dirt bikes and four-wheelers. He was hit head-on by a truck with illegal paper tags. It didn’t have insurance, didn’t have inspection, was registered to somebody else. No title. Everything you could do wrong was wrong with this vehicle.”
The fake tags linked to that crash were later connected to the nationwide paper plate operation run by Reyes.
“He didn’t realize or didn’t care about the impact it could cause,” Solbrig said. “These tags were going on cars involved in drive-by shootings, fleeing police, and sex trafficking.”
Two others involved in the scheme have also been charged.
In 2021, KPRC 2 Investigates revealed how widespread the fake paper tag problem had become, with counterfeit tags appearing on getaway vehicles as far away as New York.
The investigation helped lead to a new Texas law, effective July 1, that eliminates paper temporary plates. Dealerships now must issue temporary metal plates instead.