5 Maryland Men Indicted for Allegedly Selling Counterfeit Goods

A federal grand jury has indicted five Maryland individuals related to a conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit goods, following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

On April 22, HSI Baltimore special agents arrested the following men charged in the indictment: Tidiane Ba, 44; Mamadou Lamine Ba, 51; Abass Baro, 44 and Sakho Oumar, 33, all of Baltimore.

The fifth defendant charged in the indictment, Baba Toure, 39, also of Baltimore, is still being sought.

The defendants each face a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of $2 million.

According to the six count indictment, from October 2011 through April 2012, the defendants operated in and around Baltimore, including at the Patapsco Flea Market, selling counterfeit purses, handbags, shoes, watches, hats and other items by luxury manufacturers such as Michael Kors, Coach, Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, Louis Vuitton and Jimmy Choo.

The counterfeit goods bore the trademarks registered by victim companies with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, according to the indictment. The packages were received from merchandise suppliers in New York City and storage units were rented to store the counterfeit trademarked merchandise, according to the indictment allegations. HSI special agents seized counterfeit goods from the defendants on several occasions during the course of the investigation.

Source: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI)