Photo Courtesy of Queens DA’s Office
District Attorney Richard Brown and Assistant DA Anna Diao stand amid the more than $250,000 worth of counterfeit merchandise allegedly confiscated following the arrest of two Flushing residents.
By Forum Staff
A man and woman from Flushing are charged with trademark counterfeiting following the seizure of more than $250,000 worth of fake designer goods recovered from three different storage units in Ridgewood, Queens. Dozens of boxes and bags filled with alleged knock-off handbags, wallets, belts and even cigarette lighters were confiscated. District AttorneyBrown said, “Selling fake designer goods is not a victimless crime. Counterfeit operations, such as this one, fuel an underground economy that rakes in hundreds of thousands of dollars to alleged criminals. These cash-only transactions also rob both City and State municipalities out of much-needed tax revenue. Also, these knock-offs damage both the reputation and brand of designers because the merchandise is inferior in both material and quality.” District Attorney Brown added, “My office is committed to working closely with the NYPD and all our law enforcement partners to close down these illegal operations and prosecute all those involved in selling knock-off merchandise.” The District Attorney identified the defendants as Xu Jing, 46, and Jing Ye, 43, both of 41st Avenue in the Flushing section of Queens. The defendants were arraigned yesterday before Queens Criminal Court Judge Stephanie Zaro on a complaint charging them with first-degree trademark counterfeiting. The defendants were released on their own recognizance and ordered to return to court on December 13, 2016. If convicted, the defendants face up to five years in prison. According to the complaints, a court-authorized search warrant was executed earlier this week at CubeSmart Self Storage in Ridgewood, Queens. Both defendants were allegedly observed selling fake designer merchandise from the storage units, where dozens of boxes and bags were filled with knock-off Coach purses, Louis Vuitton handbags, Chanel leather goods, as well as pocketbooks and accessories with the Michael Kors, Tory Burch.
