Social media influencer sentenced in fake good case

A UK man who promoted and sold counterfeit designer clothing and mobile phones to more than 20,000 Instagram followers has been sentenced.

Jack Allen (20) of Castleford is reported to have made more than £14,300 ($16,000) after promoting the items on his Instagram account – @CounterClothing297 – and as 'The Masked Gang Man' on YouTube and a second Instagram account, where he shared videos of himself reviewing counterfeit items while wearing a face mask and sunglasses to conceal his identity.

Allen pleaded guilty at Leeds Magistrates Court to two offences of distributing articles infringing trademarks, following an investigation by City of London Police's Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU).

He was sentenced to 16 weeks imprisonment, suspended for 12 months, ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work and to pay a £128 surcharge.

PIPCU detectives were made aware of the accounts in March 2021, after a brand owner identified items sold by Allen as counterfeit. Test purchases revealed a designer necklace and watch, jumper and mobile phone as fake.

Allen arranged the sale of 15 counterfeit smartphones for £1,750 over Instagram in July 2021, said PIPCU in a statement. The following month, he offered to sell a further 40 phones for £4,400.

He was arrested by PIPCU officers in September 2021. The unit seized three devices and a large quantity of counterfeit footwear and mobile phones, thought to be worth an estimated £10,300.

Image by Webster2703 from Pixabay