Boutique Owner Charged After Discovery of $40 Million in Fake Prada, Dior, Chanel, and Louis Vuitton Pieces
BYTRACE WILLIAM COWEN
A Long Island area boutique owner has been charged with trademark counterfeiting in connection with millions of dollars of fakes.
31-year-old Lindsay Castelli was charged following an 18-month investigation involving multiple agencies, CBS New York reported this week. Castelli, according to a press release from the Nassau County Police Department, was the “sole owner” of Linny’s Boutique in Plainview.
Castelli was arrested last week and is being charged with second-degree trademark counterfeiting, police said. She’s next set to appear in court on Nov. 2. Meanwhile, social media pages for the shop, which is now closed, appear to have been removed.
Inside the shop, it’s alleged by law enforcement that “thousands” of heat-sealed fake labels were discovered. During the execution of a subsequent search warrant, investigators say they found and seized a total of 22 printing press machines, as well as numerous counterfeit pieces posing as items from familiar high-dollar names including Gucci, Prada, Dior, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, and more.
Nassau County detectives recovered 22 printing presses at the store that were used to create “thousands of synthetic heat-sealed counterfeit labels,” which Castelli would then attach to the cheap clothing items before jacking their price way up, police said.
“A simple $10 sweatshirt, you put the Chanel brand on it, it sells for $5,300,” Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said at a press conference.
“They would take a hat, a $3 hat, a 50-cent item on the side. They would heat-seal it onto the hat and sell the hat for $300,’’ Ryder said.
“The combined value of the items was over $40,000,000,” a local police rep said in a press release issued on Tuesday, adding that additional investigation resulted in the realization that the fake items were also allegedly being shipped to locations around the country.
“This was a sophisticated operation,” Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said of the case, the multi-agency response behind which was known as “Operation Rainfall.” The initial investigation into the alleged counterfeit operation, police said this week, took place in April of last year.
US postal inspectors kicked off the probe at Linny’s Boutique in Plainview in April 2021, and Castelli surrendered to cops Friday, three days after authorities executed a search warrant that turned up her humongous stash of fugazis, according to police.
Castelli was charged with second-degree trademark counterfeiting and released ahead of a November court appearance, a press release said.
If convicted, she could face up to three years in prison, prosecutors said.
Her Plainview shop’s website boasts, “Here at Linnys we hand pick each item to fit the fashion needs of all our babes!
“We stay ahead of the fashion trends to make sure you are always looking your best!” it adds.
Some of her customers were furious at being duped.
“Totally betrayed — you go in expecting that you’re buying as advertised and that you’re buying quality,” shopper Carole Rutkovsky told ABC.
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said, “This is something that we do not tolerate in Nassau County.
“We want people to know exactly what they’re getting,’’ he said, according to CBS. “We want businesses around the world to know that we protect their trademark and service mark here.”
US Postal Inspector Glen McKechnie said, “Not only did she cheat the retail industry, but she also cheated postal customers that must ultimately shoulder the costly burden.’’
Source:https://www.complex.com/style/boutique-owner-charged-counterfeiting-40-million-dollars-fakes
