More than 100 fake purses leads to charge for Cuyahoga Falls man
A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Ronald Jason Azar, age 34, of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, with trafficking in counterfeit merchandise, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.
The indictment charges that on or about April 27, 2011, Azar intentionally trafficked and attempted to traffic in approximately 104 counterfeit designer handbags which, if genuine, were valued at approximately $183,488.
The counterfeit bags include 12 Gucci, 23 Coach, 17 Louis Vuitton, 5 Versace, 5 Chanel, 2 Marc Jacobs, 3 Dooney & Burke, 6 Prada, 8 Fendi, 7 Chloe, 7 Jimmy Choo and 9 Dolce & Gabbana handbags, which contained counterfeit marks, logos, labels, hang tags, patches, stickers, emblems, holograms and packaging. The marks on the merchandise were identical to and substantially indistinguishable from marks used on genuine merchandise, and were in use and registered for such goods on the principle register of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, according to the indictment.
Also, the indictment alleges that the use of such counterfeit and spurious marks was likely to cause confusion, mistake or to deceive.
If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert W. Kern, Cybercrime Coordinator for the Cleveland U.S. Attorney’s Office, following an investigation by the Cleveland Office of the Department of Homeland Security, Office Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government's burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
