Defendants sold counterfeit handbags, shoes and electronics
Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice announced on Dec. 19 that eight people have been arrested and charged with selling counterfeit shoes, handbags, and electronics at an outdoor flea market in Valley Stream.
Rice said that on Saturday, Dec. 15, investigators from the DA’s Office conducted a joint operation with the Nassau County Police Department’s Asset Forfeiture Unit and ICE’s Trademark Counterfeit team at the Green Acres Outdoor Flea Market. Numerous booths were identified by experts for selling counterfeit Coach and Louis Vuitton handbags, UGG boots, music CDs, and DVDs.
“Counterfeit merchandisers steal billions of dollars away from legitimate businesses, funnel it into the black market, and flood the streets with cheap knockoffs,” Rice said. “My office will continue working with fellow law enforcement agencies and industry experts to ensure that every customer is getting the genuine article when they hand over their hard-earned cash.”
Each defendant was issued a desk appearance ticket and faces up to four years in prison if convicted, according to Rice. Charged in the sweep are:
Avinash Gayadat, 21, of Richmond Hill. Gayadat is charged with second-degree trademark counterfeiting.
Raymond Gillies, 61, of Laurelton. Gillies is charged with second-degree trademark counterfeiting.
Allan Sanasse, 45, of Jamaica. Sanasse is charged with second-degree trademark counterfeiting.
Rohanand Parasram, 46, of Brooklyn. Parasram is charged with second-degree trademark counterfeiting.
Migues Ragoonath, 25, of South Ozone Park. Ragoonath is charged with second-degree trademark counterfeiting.
Lamont Faulkner, 36, of Springfield Gardens. Faulkner is charged with failure to disclose the origin of a recording.
Gregory Janvier, 35, of Jamaica. Janvier is charged with failure to disclose the origin of a recording.
Rice said Yu Ma, 47, of Flushing, was arrested on Dec. 18 and charged with second-degree trademark counterfeiting. Ma abandoned her booth Saturday when she saw investigators. She was arrested when she attempted to retrieve her merchandise from Flea Market security, according to Rice.
The International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition estimates that counterfeiting costs U.S. businesses between $200 billion and $250 billion per year, and that it is directly responsible for the loss of more than 750,000 American jobs.
