Monterey Park Video Store Owner, Manager Accused Of Trafficking Fake DVDs
LOS ANGELES (CBS) — Authorities say they've arrested the owner and manager of a Monterey Park video store on suspicion of importing and selling Chinese movie DVDs bearing a counterfeit Dolby Digital trademark.
Wei Sheng "Jackie" Chen, 46, of Arcadia and Dong Qun Lin, 40, of Alhambra – owner and manager of Tema Media Inc., respectively – were charged in a federal criminal complaint with trafficking in counterfeit goods, according to U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement.
The arrests are the result of an investigation that began in September 2010, after a shipment of more than 1,700 DVDs from Hong Kong addressed to Tema Media were intercepted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers. It was determined that the Dolby trademark stamps on the DVDs were counterfeit.
In January, agents executed a federal search warrant at Tema Media, where they seized nearly 25,000 Chinese DVDs allegedly bearing counterfeit Dolby Digital trademarks.
Had the seized DVDs been genuine, they would have had an estimated retail value of more than $1 million, according to ICE.
Subsequent investigation revealed that Tema Media had accepted about 85 shipments of Chinese DVDs in a five-month period from March through October 2010, according to ICE officials.
If convicted, Chen and Lin each face a maximum possible sentence of 10 years in federal prison, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
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