A man has been detained for the sale of counterfeit trademarks in large quantities and money funds and gold bars obtained through criminal proceedings, amounting to more than EUR 160 000, in addition to which movable and immovable property has been arrested, as well as money amounting to more than EUR 250 000.
On 2 October 2018, criminal proceedings following the third paragraph of Section 206 of the Criminal Law were initiated in the Department for Combating Economic Crimes of the State Police's Central Criminal Police Office's Office for Combating Cybercrime, regarding the illicit use of a trade mark, mark or design, or the deliberate use or distribution of a forged mark, if it has been committed in large quantities or in the case of a criminal offence provided for in Paragraph one of this Section, if committed by an organised group.
The process was launched, on the fact that in March 2018 the illicit use and distribution of the trade marks “Philipp Plein” and “Hugo Boss” were identified in trade in Riga, for which significant damage was caused to the owners of the trade marks.
In November 2018, procedural actions were taken to detain a person who committed the aforementioned criminal offence, and a search was carried out at a trading venue belonging to it, during which illicit trademarks were repeatedly identified. A total of two episodes in March and November 2018 caused damage to the affected companies or trademark owners of €71 839.
A man born in 1986 was detained on suspicion of committing a criminal offence. The person showed resistance during the conduct of the investigative activities and fled police officers. The law guards localized the suspect's hiding address, in which he was also detained. At the time of his arrest, the person again resisted and attempted to escape by jumping out of the window to the roof of the building, but on the roof he was apprehended. A sports bag containing money and investment gold bars, worth more than €160,000, was also located at him. The man hasn't been able to explain the origins of these money and gold bars.
During the course of the investigation, the real estate belonging to the suspected person in Eastern Europe, as well as a vehicle whose purchase could not take place on the basis of the official income of the man, was identified as a result of cooperation with the State Police General Criminal Division 1 Administration. Criminal proceedings were further qualified in accordance with the third paragraph of Article 195 of the Criminal Law for the laundering of proceeds or other property, which took place in a large or organised group. In total, movable and non-resident property was arrested in this criminal proceeding, as well as money amounting to morethan EUR 250 000.
During the investigation, the man had a suitable security feature — arrest, which was later amended to a security feature unrelated to custodial detention.
The alleged person's fault for the criminal offence under investigation was proven and the criminal file was transferred to the Public Prosecutor's Office for Financial and Economic Crimes in May 2020 for the purpose of initiating criminal proceedings.
The national police recall that European Union legislation lays down essential requirements that must be strictly respected in order to ensure that products marketed in the European Union meet high standards of health, safety and the environment. Given that producers and distributors of counterfeit products do not invest heavily in the development and production of a counterfeit product, nor do they respect the high standards and quality requirements established by the manufacturer for counterfeit products know their origin and health effects.
Counterfeit products are most frequently sold in an illegal way, without paying national taxes and levies, thereby causing losses to the economy of the country concerned. As well as making counterfeit products widely known to a known manufacturer, particularly where the use of such a falsified product is regularly carried out, material damage is caused not only to the manufacturer of the original products but also to consumers.
The Cybercrime Combating Division of the National Police's Office calls on citizens to electronically inform the State Police to email enap@vp.gov.lv about Internet sites and profiles through which they may be offered to purchase counterfeit goods.
Prepared by:
Krista Andersone
National police
Public relations department
Senior specialist
Phone. 67075088
Mob.phone 27876309
E-mail: krista.andersone@vp.gov.lv