Detectives of the Territorial Department of the Bureau of Economic Security in the Odessa region exposed a group of individuals who organized the illegal sale of clothing, footwear, and accessories under the brands of world-famous companies through a network of sports stores.
A representative of the company — the trademark owner — contacted the department and reported the illegal use of the logo of a popular sports brand. The sale of counterfeit products, which were passed off as originals, caused significant losses to the brand owner.
During the investigation, BEB detectives established that the perpetrators organized the operation of a network of sports stores operating in the Odessa, Mykolaiv, and Vinnytsia regions. In stores, citizens could freely purchase counterfeit shoes, sports suits, sneakers, backpacks, wallets and other goods. In addition, sales took place via social networks and online applications, and orders were delivered by mail throughout Ukraine. The funds received from the sale were transferred to a specially opened bank account.
During authorized searches in stores, offices and warehouses in the Odessa region, detectives seized 426.5 thousand UAH in cash, more than 23 thousand items of clothing and footwear under the brands of famous world manufacturers, office equipment and draft accounting. The total value of the seized items is about 33.4 million UAH.
Currently, a pre-trial investigation is underway within the framework of criminal proceedings opened under Part 3 of Article 229 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – illegal use of a mark for goods and services, a company name or a qualified indication of the origin of goods. The full range of persons involved in criminal activity is being identified.
Operational support is provided by employees of the Strategic Investigations Department in the Odessa region of the Strategic Investigations Department of the National Police of Ukraine. Procedural management is provided by the Odesa Regional Prosecutor’s Office.
