Milton resident among two charged after seizure of 16,000 fake World Cup items

A Milton, Ont. resident is one of two men arrested after Toronto police executed a search warrant and seized more than 16,000 counterfeit soccer jerseys ahead of the FIFA World Cup.

The jerseys were being sold as authentic “kits” at “legitimate” prices.

“Today we are announcing the results of a Toronto police investigation that has led to the largest seizure of counterfeit soccer jerseys in Canadian history,” says Deputy Chief Robert Johnson of the Toronto Police Service.

Last Tuesday Toronto police executed a search warrant at a legitimate warehouse in Mississauga and seized more than 16,000 counterfeit soccer jerseys and other merchandise with the World Cup just around the corner.

Some of the brands faked were FIFA, Nike, Puma and Adidas.

“We seized more than 16,000 counterfeit jerseys and items as well as two counterfeit FIFA World Cup trophies with an estimated street value of more than $3.5 million,” says Supt. David Ecklund.

The soccer jerseys were being sold in stores as “authentic” which can retail for more than $200.

Police say their investigation began last month after a local law firm specializing in brand protection received a complaint about fraudulent merchandise.

“We’re talking about people who legitimately come to a match, that legitimately want to buy something that is actually legitimate. They’re paying full price, and they’re not getting what they expect for full price,” says Euklund.

“There are items that are identifiable, there are spelling mistakes on some of these tags, if you look and feel the products, it doesn’t have the same quality,” says David Lipkis from Lipkis Law. “I will tell you that there are retailers that do not know they are purchasing these counterfeit goods and selling them to the public. The reality is that you have to remain vigilant both as a retailer and as a customer.”

Ramy Jaber, 41, of Milton, and 62-year-old Walid Sarhan, of Mississauga, were both arrested and charged with several offences including fraud over $5000.

Police are reminding the public to only buy items from trusted retailers and to come forward if they believe they are a victim of fraud.

“What this does is directly fuels organized crime and human trafficking. So that dollar being spent unknowingly causes real harm, the consumer has to remember that. There is a trade off for saving money at the front end which might create a victim at the back end,” says Johnson.

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