Chinese man admits to smuggling Apple counterfeits
A Chinese citizen based in the US has admitted to smuggling counterfeit Apple products from China into the US.
Jianhua Li pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to smuggle counterfeit goods into the US and one count of trafficking in counterfeit goods, at the US District Court for the District of New Jersey on Friday, February 2.
Through his company Dream Digitals, Li conspired with three others to traffic more than 40,000 electronics devices and accessories from China, along with labels and packaging featuring counterfeit Apple trademarks.
He shipped the products separately to the labels in order to avoid detection by customs officers and sold the products through Dream Digitals as legitimate Apple products.
Li, who lives in the US on a student visa, smuggled counterfeit iPhones and iPads into the US between 2009 and 2014 and, according to a release issued by the US Department of Justice, he received sales proceeds totalling more than $1.1 million.
The payments were “funnelled back” to accounts in Florida and New Jersey, and a portion of these proceeds were then transferred to conspirators in Italy.
Li’s conspirators—Andreina Becerra, Roberto Volpe, and Rosario LaMarca—have also pleaded guilty. LaMarca was sentenced to 37 months in prison in July 2017, and Becerra and Volpe are awaiting sentencing.
Li is due to be sentenced on May 30.
Last week, WIPR reported that a Florida-based man was sentenced to 366 days in prison for selling counterfeit jewellery and perfume from China in the US.
Did you enjoy reading this story? Sign up to our free daily newsletters and get stories like this sent straight to your inbox.
Today's top stories
EU court rulings from last week and why they matter
Instagram sued over geo-location feature
DJ Khaled opposes ‘We The Best Lifestyle’ trademark
Louboutin trademark case: what you need to know
