Directors of Wimbledon firm in court
A Wimbledon company has been fined £5,000 and its directors given a suspended jail sentence after admitting selling counterfeit goods.
K.A.N.N Trading Ltd pleaded guilty to the sale and possession of counterfeit goods from August to November 2009 during the case at Kingston Crown court.
Directors Mr Navaid Ahmad, of Raymond Road, Wimbledon, and Mr Atif Mahmood of Alpha Road, Woking, received a 12-month suspended prison sentence, 240 hours community service and a three-month curfew monitored by electronic tagging.
Both men were also disqualified as directors for seven years and the judge ordered the destruction of the counterfeit goods.
Merton Trading Standards were alerted after a consumer in Plymouth bought a popular make of paint roller called a ‘Paint Runner’ from the company's TV Deals website. When it arrived the customer found it was very poor quality and complained to the manufacturers who examined the item and found it was a fake. A second test purchase carried out by Trading Standards was also confirmed as counterfeit.
A warrant to inspect K.A.N.N Trading Ltd's storage premises in Wimbledon was executed by Trading Standards and 329 "Paint Runners" were found. The team also seized pedicure sets, razor blades and broom vacuum cleaners that were later confirmed as counterfeit.
The court heard the defendants had imported the goods from China and the manufacturers had made it clear that they were making copies and even asked for genuine products to assist in the deception.
Despite a previous prosecution by Merton Council for a similar offence in January 2009 and warnings from the legitimate manufacturers, the defendants had carried on selling fake goods, the court was told.
The judge said that these warnings should have been listened to and that the defendants had narrowly escaped custody on this occasion. n his summing up, the judge said the offences were "deliberate, dishonest acts calculated by two intelligent men and committed for one purpose only, namely to make a financial profit to the detriment of others."
He went on to say that Mr Ahmad and Mr Mahmood had let down their friends, family and community in a calculated way. Following this successful prosecution, the council will look to recover any proceeds made from these crimes and try to ensure that the victims of their activities are compensated.
Cabinet member for environmental sustainability and regeneration, Councillor Andrew Judge said: "We are committed to protecting our residents and businesses from the consequences of counterfeiting. Some fake goods pose a safety risk to the public and many are manufactured in unhygienic conditions with little regard to quality. We will do all we can to ensure that local businesses are not put at a disadvantage by these unscrupulous traders."
June 14, 2011