Selling counterfeit garments; MC imposes fine on accused

By S.S Selvanayagam

In an action filed before the Colombo Magistrate Praharsha Ranasinghe, the accused pleaded guilty to the charges and a fine of Rs. 10,000 to the state and compensation amounting to Rs. 100,000 was awarded to the Complainant.

On a complaint made by Victoria’s Secret Stores Brand Management Inc., a team of officers from the Criminal Investigation Department recently raided a large stock of Counterfeit Victoria’s Secret “Pink” garments from a location in Kelaniya.

The Complainant is a company globally famous in the fashion industry and a leading specialty retailer of lingerie and beauty products. It is having its headquarters in Columbus, Ohio U.S.A.

Sudath Perera Associates appeared on behalf of the Complainant and watched their interests.

The Counsel for the  Complainant  informed Court that at the time of the raid  the Accused, Jayakodi Arachchige Ajantha Lakshman Dias had in his  possession  a quantity of 1359 Counterfeit Victoria’s Secret Love Pink shorts and had being carrying on this operation for 25 years, using the goodwill associated with the trademark.

The sale of counterfeit goods is an infringement under the Intellectual Property Act No. 36 of 2003. Under the said act, if a person and/or persons are convicted, a fine up to Rs. 500,000, and up to six months imprisonment, or both may be imposed.