NIBONG TEBAL: The Penang branch of the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living (KPDN) arrested a married couple and seized various famous and international branded items believed to be fake worth RM70,250 during a raid on a two-storey house in an elite housing area in Simpang Ampat here today.
In the raid on the rented premises at about 11 am today, the team nabbed the couple and two workers, all aged between 23 and 31, while they were busy packing the items for suspected delivery via courier service.
Penang KPDN director S. Jegan said they received a complaint from a representative of the trademark company and had conducted intelligence since last week.
“Upon inspecting the house, we found suspected counterfeit items like handbags, bags, wallets, jewellery and perfume using registered trademarks of various brands, including Louis Vuitton, Channel, Christian Dior, Gucci, Balenciaga and Celine,” he told reporters after the raid here today.
Jegan said preliminary investigations found that the couple had been selling the counterfeit items online via live broadcasts on social media applications, with the male suspect claiming they could make about RM50,000 a month through three sale sessions per week.
He said they initially had difficulty gaining entrance into the housing area as it was gated and guarded and that the couple had previously rented a house in Parit Buntar, Perak for their illegal activities and moved frequently to avoid detection.
“We detained the four people for further investigations and the case is being investigated under the Trademarks Act 2019,” he said, adding that the couple had been renting the house in Simpang Ampat for RM1,800 per month for the past four months. -Bernama
