Influencer gets 14-month sentence for selling fake luxury goods

Daejeon District Court on Thursday gave a 14-month prison sentence to an infamous Instagram influencer who grossed billions by selling fake luxury goods.
 
Along with the 14-month sentence, the court ordered the recovery of criminal proceeds amounting to 2.4 billion won ($1.8 million) and a penalty of 20 million won on the charges of violating the Design Protection Act and Unfair Competition Protection Act.
 
The financial penalties have been levied on the company established by the influencer in Dec. 2021.
 
According to the legal circle, the company was set up for the sale and distribution of counterfeits. It hired employees and ordered domestic and overseas subcontractors to manufacture the knockoffs of luxury items.
 

A fake product made by the influencer’s company (left) beside an original Louis Vuitton dress [SBS NEWS SCREEN CAPTURE]

In September, the influencer was indicted with detention on the charge of circulating more than 20,000 fake pieces that copied the clothes, shoes, and accessories of 58 designer brands such as Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Time and EENK. Although six other employees were referred to the prosecution, their indictments were postponed.
 
It was the first case where the criminal suspect came under arrest for the violation of the Design Protection Act and Unfair Competition Protection Act.
 
With the help of the Daejeon Prosecutors’ Office, police officers specializing in intellectual property froze her financial accounts and issued a preservation order by seizing the ownership of her real estate property and bonds. The authorities captured 600 pieces of counterfeits sold by her and her company.
 
She misappropriated her well-known popularity as a fashion influencer to promote her knockoffs and to entice her customers. Then, she endowed member titles to her customers and made her market exclusive.
 
She lived in an upscale villa in Gangnam District in Seoul, an area with the highest salary earners, and possessed several luxury cars. She showed off her glamorous lifestyle on her social media.
 

Workers inside the influencer’s company located in Gangnam, Seoul. [YONHAP]

“She infringed on the intellectual property of the trademark holder and disrupted the norms of business transactions. It was an organized and intentional crime that involved several employees,” the judge said.
 
“Even after receiving requests from original trademark holders and brands to stop the infringement, her wrongdoings continued, even when she was under investigation.”
 
The judge added the fact that she did not deceive her clients by presenting her items as authentic items and that customers knew what they were buying were fake products, was taken into consideration.
 
The value of the knockoffs that she made, calculated according to the prices of authentic items, would amount to 34.4 billion won.
 

BY LEE SOO-JUNG [lee.soojung1@joongang.co.kr]