Worthing man fined for selling fake t-shirts on eBay

Joseph Walker, 31, of Lanfranc Road, pleaded guilty to five charges of breaching the Trade Mark Act when he appeared before Worthing Magistrates on Friday.

He had been making counterfeit t-shirts, including MTV and Led Zeppelin ones, at his home and then selling them online.

An investigating was launched by West Sussex Trading Standards officers last year.

As part of the investigation, Mr Walker sold one t-shirt online to a Trading Standards officer and another to a Trade Mark representative.

Magistrates heard that Mr Walker had profited to the tune of around £10,000 from his venture.

He was given a fine of £2,500, ordered to pay costs of £1,324.76 and a £50 victim surcharge.

Lionel Barnard, West Sussex County Council’s Cabinet Member for Residents’ Services with responsibility for Trading Standards, said: “The sale of counterfeit goods is damaging to local traders who are finding it difficult enough in the current economic climate.

“When purchasing counterfeit products the public is unaware of the origin of the goods and they are not subjected to the strict quality controls you would expect from a genuine product.

“Counterfeit products are usually substandard quality.

“This is another good result for consumers in West Sussex and of course our local businesses. I want to thank our Trading Standards team for another excellent job.”