HONOLULU -- The Canadian-made "Eliminator" hides license plates from certain angles and advertises itself as a way to beat photo-cops.

And with the state's new photo enforcement vans churning out tickets, the $35 license-plate covers (pictured, right) are selling fast. But the Honolulu Police Department says if you put one on your car, you will get a ticket from a real live officer.

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"It doesn't just make your plate invisible to the radar guns, it also obstructs the plate from a plain-eye view," according to Maj. Robert Prasser, commander of the HPD traffic division.

According to state law, "Number plates shall at all times be displayed entirely unobscured."

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"On our opinion, the Eliminator obstructs the license plate and is in violation of the law," Prasser said.

Another side issue in the controversy is that the primary distributor of the Eliminator is a Honolulu Police Department lieutenant who runs an auto shop in Waipio.

Lt. John Pinero insists it is not illegal to sell the plates.

"It still hasn't been proven to me that they are illegal," he told KITV 4 News.

But the police department is looking into whether it is proper for a police officer to sell something designed to obstruct law enforcement.

Meanwhile, police officials point out another technique to beat the cameras -- removing your front plates -- is also illegal.

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