3 People Sentenced for Selling Illegally Imported, Lead-Tainted Jewelry
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California has announced that on May 9, 2011, Il Keun and Jacqueline Oh, a husband and wife who own a Los Angeles jewelry store, and the store manager, Joon Yeop Kim, were sentenced for illegally importing and selling counterfeit designer jewelry, some of which tested positive for hazardous levels of lead.
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ICE Seized Over 25K Pieces of Counterfeit Jewelry Manufactured in China
These sentencings are the culmination of an investigation that began in 2007 when U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) received a tip that the Los Angeles jewelry store, Elegance Fashion Mart, was selling counterfeit designer merchandise. During the course of the investigation, ICE HSI agents seized more than 25,000 counterfeit pieces of jewelry and accessories, including necklaces, rings, bracelets, watches, hair ornaments and cell phone charms. The investigation revealed that the counterfeit goods were manufactured in Qingdao, China.
Counterfeits Were Labeled as Designer Tiffany, Bulgari, Louis Vuitton, Etc.
The fakes were purportedly made by well-known designer labels, including Tiffany and Co., Bulgari, Louis Vuitton, Baby Phat, Chanel, Tous, Bebe, Christian Dior, Van Cleef and Arpels, Hello Kitty and Juicy Couture. If the seized products had been genuine, they would have had an estimated retail value of more than $18 million.
Lab Tests Showed Counterfeits Contained Nearly 20x the Amount of Safe Lead
The three defendants pleaded guilty in June 2010 to one count of conspiracy and one count of introducing and delivering a hazardous substance. The hazardous substance charge was lodged after lab tests showed some of the counterfeit jewelry seized in the case contained nearly 20 times the amount of lead deemed safe by the Consumer Product Safety Commission for use by children1. The jewelry items were labeled as “lead-free.”
Owners Sentenced to 37 Months in Prison, Manager to 30 Months in Prison
Owners Il Keun and Jacqueline Oh were each sentenced to 37 months in federal prison. Joon Yeop Kim was sentenced to 30 months in prison.
1The federal Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) imposed progressive limits on lead content in consumer products designed or intended primarily for children 12 and under. Since August 14, 2009, the allowable lead content limit has been 300 parts per million (ppm) and on August 14, 2011, the limit will decrease to 100 ppm, unless CPSC determines that it is not technologically feasible for a product or product category.