Counterfeit e-seller to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work

A Worcester woman was sentenced to 200 hours of unpaid work after she was found selling counterfeit goods over the internet. On 30 January at Worcester Magistrates Court Sharon Proctor pleaded guilty to five counts of breaching the Trade marks Act 1994. This follows a raid on her home by Worcestershire Regulatory Services Trading Standards Officers which was being used to manufacture the goods. The court heard how Miss Proctor was making and selling hooded tops with the JLS logo and T-shirts with the Children In Need logo Pudsey Bear. EBay records show over a short period of around 18 months the 40-year-old has sold 9,592 items with a value of £64,730.

Miss Proctor was also ordered to pay £3000 costs and a victim surcharge £60. When considering sentence the Magistrates said that she was only just below the custody threshold.  After the hearing Worcestershire Regulatory Services Joint Committee Chairman Cllr Lucy Hodgson said: “Our Trading Standards officers have shown that illegal activity over the internet will not be tolerated and they have the expertise to track down sellers and bring them before the Courts.