John Cooper, 65, of Rowan Close, Haverhill, who traded as John’s Menswear, sold fake designer goods that included the brands Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Gant, Tommy Hilfiger, Fred Perry and Lacoste. Cooper pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing in January 2024 at Cambridge Crown Court to five offences under the Trade Marks Act 1994.
At a hearing at Cambridge Crown Court yesterday, the Court sentenced Cooper to 9 months in prison, suspended for 12 months. He was also ordered to complete 75 hours of unpaid work.
The hearing was heard in front of Recorder H Cohen who granted an Order under the Proceeds of Crime Act for Suffolk Trading Standards to investigate the financial benefit made by John Cooper from the sale of the counterfeit clothing.
An investigation was launched by Trading Standards following the seizure of 768 clothing items from a stall run by Cooper at Bury St Edmunds market in August 2023. The clothing included shirts, t-shirts, polo shirts, shorts, underwear and hats, with an estimated street value of £21,171.16. The equivalent retail value of the seized goods if they were genuine items is estimated at £61,589.81.
John Cooper first came to the attention of Suffolk Trading Standards in March 2023 when the trademark representative React Services UK alerted the service to the stall in Bury St Edmunds. Trading Standards contacted Cooper and advised him of his obligations and provided guidance on how to check the stock he was selling was legitimate. Cooper denied that the goods were counterfeit, claiming that they were last season’s stock, as well as second hand, vintage, and refurb stock.
Covert test purchases of clothing were carried out on the stall which were confirmed to be counterfeit, which resulted in the raid on 9 August 2023.
Further investigations found that Cooper was also advertising the fake goods from a Facebook Group.
Councillor Steve Wiles, Suffolk County Council’s Cabinet Member for Public Health and Public Protection, said:
“Not only is counterfeiting an illegal activity, it also takes away custom from legitimate, local, hardworking businesses. I am fully supportive of the action taken by the council’s trading standards team in bringing this individual to task.
“Counterfeit goods may appear to be a cheap alternative, but they are, by their very nature, inferior products and anyone involved in counterfeiting in Suffolk should expect a visit, loss of the goods they have purchased and potential legal action.”
Graham Crisp, Suffolk County Council’s Head of Suffolk Trading Standards, added:
“I would like to praise the Trading Standards team for all their hard work in this case and for bringing this offender to justice. I would like to thank React Services UK Limited for their assistance in the investigation, providing us with vital witness statements and I also offer my thanks to Suffolk Police for their support during the seizure of the goods.”
Anybody with information on individuals selling counterfeit goods can contact the Trading Standards team in confidence by calling Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 0808 223 1133.
