INVESTIGATORS & SECURITY CONSULTANTS

Blog

Big Brand Fake Merchandise Fraudster John Young Ordered to Pay Back £60k by Court

The successful conclusion of this case follows investigative work carried out by Surelock.

A Suffolk internet fraudster who sold fake JLS, Justin Bieber, Olly Murs, and One Direction clothing has been ordered to repay £60,000.

John Young was jailed for 12 months at Ipswich Crown Court in August, but has now been made subject of a confiscation order to claw back money he made from his crime.

The 53-year-old duped fans when selling the branded merchandise he had altered himself through eBay.

image
One of the 1D jackets sold by John Young

 

At his confiscation hearing Young, of Sotterley Road, Hulver, near Beccles, was told he must pay back £59,983.69.

He was given six months to hand the money over or face a further 20 months in prison in default.

Young was caught following a 16-month investigation by Suffolk’s trading standards officers.

At his plea hearing he admitted 13 breaches of trademark regulations between 2009 and 2013 and possessing a vinyl transfer machine for use in fraud.

He also admitted three offences of making articles for use in fraud and asked for an offence relating to the sale of number plates without the necessary identity checks being made to be taken into consideration.

Young had even said had he researched the sale of counterfeit goods on the internet.

Although the prosecution claimed the trademark offences related to goods worth £120,000, Young only accepted they were worth £95,000 and although his gross sales from selling number plates were £75,000 his profit was only between £7,000-£10,000.

Young purchased cheap items of clothing and used a heat transfer machine to apply trademarks.

Before the recession Young, who had no previous convictions, had run a signs business.

His family was then hit by several health problems and he had tried to help out his son after he was made redundant.

http://www.eadt.co.uk/news/jls_olly_murs_one_direction_and_justin_bieber_fake_merchandise_

fraudster_john_young_ordered_to_pay_back_60_000_by_court_1_3873403?usurv=skip

 

Counterfeit Toys Worth £500k Bound for Christmas Market are Seized in Salford

Fake and dangerous toys, worth £500,000, heading for the Christmas market have been seized in Salford.

Peppa Pig, Disney’s Frozen, Angry Birds, and Super Mario counterfeit goods were among the huge haul.

Some are difficult to distinguish from the real products – but have no warnings or safety advice on the packaging and the materials have not been tested for use in toys which is required by law.

In one business unit, council trading standards officers and police recovered over 7,000 counterfeit Super Mario toys, over 350 fake Samsung Galaxy mobile phones and 2,000 knock-off Disney Frozen loom band sets.

In another, they seized 3,700 counterfeit toys, including 21 boxes of Frozen items, 20 boxes of Disney toys, 12 boxes of Spiderman toys and 10 of Toy Story.

Salford’s deputy mayor, Coun David Lancaster, said: “It took officers eight transit van journeys, two combi van journeys and two trips in a people carrier just to remove all the items. Those not needed for court evidence will be crushed and recycled.

“These counterfeit goods were targeted at children as young as four but contained sharp points, small parts which a child could choke on and lead in the paint used.

“They were unsafe as well as ripping off legitimate brands. I am delighted we have been able to take them out of circulation.”

The success came just days after Salford and Manchester councils and other partner agencies launched a campaign for “better business.”

The aim is to make sure all businesses operate from a level playing field by making sure they comply with all the laws – ranging from employment and tax laws to copyright laws and fire safety in premises.

Over the next few months, trading standards staff, officers from Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, the Home Office illegal working and modern slavery teams, police, and the fire service will be visiting companies across Manchester and Salford.

Coun Lancaster added: “It’s about offering advice on how to make sure they are operating legally, safely and ethically – as much as taking action where they are not. It’s to make sure that businesses who do comply with the law aren’t put at a disadvantage by those which don’t.”

The goods came from two wholesalers in the Broughton area. Samples will now undergo safety testing.

Due to the size of the seizure, trading standards officers say that prosecution of the companies is likely.

http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/counterfeit-toys-worth-500k-bound-8222410

National Counter Terrorism Awareness Week – Terrorist Tools

The theme for Friday 28th November is “Terrorist Tools”.

  • Terrorists need tools like guns, ammunition and explosives to operate. The Government is working to make it more difficult for people intent on harm to get hold of weapons and explosives.
  • Firearms, ammunition and commercial explosives are regulated in the UK, which has led to the use of other chemicals to make bombs.
  • There is existing legislation in place controlling the carrying of knives and other bladed articles in public.
  • New EU legislation now requires certain chemicals to be bought with a permit and the sellers to report any suspicious transactions.
  • Police forces across England and Wales have held a national firearms amnesty throughout October and November, encouraging people to hand in illegally held guns without risk of prosecution to reduce the chance of weapons falling into the hands of extremists.

Watchmakers Take Action to Prevent Download of Copyrighted Smartwatch Designs

The world’s leading designers of luxury wristwatches are making a concerted effort to stop the growing trend of copying traditional watch-faces on to smart devices.

TorrentFreak, the piracy news site, reports that big brands including Omega, Tissot, Certina and Mondaine have taken exception to so-called ‘pirate’ faces being made available for new smartwatches, and are now trying to remove them from the smartwatchInternet.  It is said that the companies are sending cease-and-desist notices to websites offering their watch-face designs for download, although they have not confirmed this publically.

Smartwatches are available from a range of firms including Samsung, Sony and LG. Next year Apple will launch a version.

Sites such as Facerepo currently offer users the chance to download a traditional face on to their smartwatches.  The company told TorrentFreak that it acts quickly to remove watch-faces that are infringing copyright.

£25,000 Bill for eBay Trader Convicted of Selling Fake Cosmetics

An eBay seller from Exmouth who was convicted of supplying fake and unsafe cosmetic products has been ordered to pay almost £25,000 following a financial investigation into the profits made from the sales under the Proceeds of Crime Act.

Deborah Hamber received a four month suspended prison sentence plus 150 hours of community service at Exeter Crown Court in May after being prosecuted by Devon and Somerset Trading Standards Service.

She now has six months to pay £24,720.02 and if she does not she faces a 14 month prison sentence.

Testing

Ms Hamber used two separate eBay accounts to sell £25,000 worth of counterfeit cosmetic products, bearing brand names such as Benefit, Lancome and MAC.

counterfeit-goods1-300x225Trading Standards Officers carried out a test purchase and had the goods analysed.   Following confirmation that the products were counterfeit, a warrant was executed at her Exmouth home and more fake goods were seized.

There, letters were found to Ms Hamber from the UK Border Agency and Detain UK, advising her that they had detained parcels of Benefit cosmetics addressed to her, as they were counterfeit.

Letters from customers, some complaining that the goods they had been sold were fake, were also found.

Feedback left on the eBay website also showed how some customers had been misled.

In addition to the products being fake, one product, a Benefit Bad Gal mascara, was found to contain twice the permitted levels of lead.

Guilty plea

Ms Hamber had earlier pleaded guilty at Magistrates Court to six offences under the Trade Marks Act 1994, in relation to the supply and intention to supply counterfeit goods, and one under the Consumer Protection Act 1987 in relation to the unsafe mascaras.

The Court also ordered forfeiture and destruction of the seized goods and a confiscation investigation under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.

Cllr Roger CroadCouncillor Roger Croad, Devon County Council’s Cabinet Member with responsibility for the Trading Standards service, welcome the move.

He said: “This legislation helps us to ensure criminals do not keep all the proceeds of their crimes. A percentage of the money paid will now be used in crime reduction and community initiatives, which is excellent news.”

If you require consumer advice, wish to make a complaint about a trader or to report a matter to Trading Standards call the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on
03454 04 05 06 or find out more at www.adviceguide.org.uk

National Counter Terrorism Awareness Week – Terrorist Financing

The theme for Thursday 27th November is “Terrorist Financing”.

Points to remember are:

  • The fight against terrorism includes effective actions to impede the flow of funds that terrorist organisations depend upon to secure weapons and other materials.
  • Terrorists raise money through money laundering, posing as charity fundraisers, placing false charity collection boxes in shops and a wide range of criminal activity.
  • If you want to help people suffering in war-torn countries like Syria and Iraq, use registered charities to donate in the safest, fastest and most convenient way. Local councils and the Charity Commission can verify legitimate charities.

There are steps you can take to ensure your money goes to the right place.  These are outlined in the following link:

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/92539732/Support%20Syria%20Safely.pdf

Support Syria Safely

National Counter Terrorism Awareness Week – Preventing Violent Extremism

The theme for Wednesday 26th November is “Preventing Violent Extremism”.

Points to remember:

Experience tells us that the terrorist threat comes not just from foreign nationals but also from terrorists born and bred in Britain.

Terrorist groups who pose a threat to us seek to recruit people to their cause. However, the percentage of people who are prepared to support violent extremism in the UK is very small.

Communities can work together to develop resilience to extremist influences that support terrorism.

The “Prevent” programme is part of the counter-terrorism strategy. Its aim is to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism.

Prevent seeks to:

  • respond to the ideological challenge of terrorism and the threat we face from those who promote it
  • prevent people from being drawn into terrorism and ensure that they are given appropriate advice and support
  • work with sectors and institutions where there are risks of radicalisation.

 

NEC Wants You to Spot Counterfeits Using Your Phone’s Camera

Want to find out whether or not something at the street market is a fake? In the future, you might only have to snap a photo with your smartphone. NEC has developed “object fingerprint” technology that compares the tiniest details of an object (such as the metal or plastic grain) with images in a cloud database; if something doesn’t look quite right in that cut-rate handbag, you’ll know right away. It’s useful beyond piracy, too. You could trace the origins of legitimate items, or make sure that repair crews are using the right parts.

nec-counterfeit-detectorThe technology isn’t perfect. You’ll need a macro lens (including one that NEC plans to release) to get the necessary high-detail shots. The Japanese firm also hasn’t said whether or not you’ll have easy access to its anti-counterfeit tool, although that partly depends on its negotiation skills; it’s hoping to partner with other companies to make the phone-based scanner a reality by March 2016. If all goes well, though, you’ll always have a way to spot black market goods.

Source: PCWorld via NEC

National Counter Terrorism Awareness Week – Transport Hubs

The theme for Tuesday 25th November is “Transport Hubs”.

Terrorists have targeted transport and transport hubs for violent attacks.

Security at train stations and other transport hubs has been increased but the police want people to be vigilant and report potential threats.

BTP

 

 

 

 

 

For counter terrorism information regarding the railway network:

http://www.btp.police.uk/advice_and_information/how_we_tackle_crime/terrorism.aspx

National Counter Terrorism Awareness Week – Crowded Places

The theme for Monday 24th November is “Crowded Places”.

Crowded Places, which can include bars, restaurants and nightclubs, may be vulnerable to a range of criminality including terrorism.   The link below provides counter terrorism security advice to those who own, operate, manage or work in bars, pubs and nightclubs.  To keep people safe, business secure and minimise disruption, you may take measures to reduce your vulnerabilities to this type of crime.

Raising the Barhttps://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/92539732/Raise%20the%20Bar.pdf