Two Flushing residents were arrested and charged with trademark counterfeiting after the Queens District Attorney’s office seized more than $250,000 worth of fake designer products from three storage units in Ridgewood.
According to Queens DA Richard A. Brown, dozens of boxes and bags filled with alleged knock-off handbags, wallets, belts and cigarette lighters — allegedly including fake Coach purses, Louis Vuitton handbags, Chanel leather goods, as well as pocketbooks and accessories with the Michael Kors, Tory Burch, Hermes, Gucci and Burberry labels — were confiscated from the CubeSmart Self Storage located at 1125 Wyckoff Ave.
“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,” Brown said. “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.”
Brown identified the defendants as Xu Jing, 46, and Jing Ye, 43, both of 41st Avenue in Flushing. Both were arraigned on Nov. 2 before Queens Criminal Court Judge Stephanie Zaro on a complaint charging them with first-degree trademark counterfeiting.
Jing and Ye were released on their own recognizance and ordered to return to court on Dec. 13. 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 the Ridgewood CubeSmart Self Storage where both Ye and Jing were allegedly observed selling their fake designer merchandise right from their three storage units.
“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,” Brown added.
