Media

Deputies Raid Whitehaven Mall—Seize Counterfeit Merchandise

Release Date: August 5, 2005

Detectives with the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office ALERT Team continued their efforts yesterday afternoon to combat the sale of counterfeit merchandise. Investigators raided two clothing stores in Southbrook Mall in Whitehaven where the illegal items were being sold.

“The sale of counterfeit merchandise continues to be a growing problem in Memphis and Shelby County. We have a commitment to retailers in our community to investigate these types of crimes which not only affect their individual businesses but hurt the Shelby County economy as well,” said Shelby County Sheriff Mark H. Luttrell, Jr.

The ALERT Team (Area Law Enforcement Retailers Team) is a collaborative between the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, area retailers, the motion picture and music industry, the Tennessee Department of Revenue, and various law enforcement agencies to investigate shoplifting, fraud, as well as stolen and counterfeit merchandise.

Deputies raided the Hip Hop and AHBS clothing stores just after 3:00 p.m. yesterday. Assisting in the investigation were officers with the Metro Gang Unit, Agents with the United States Customs Service, the Tennessee Department of Revenue and investigators with Haney and Associates, a firm used by designer merchandise companies to investigate counterfeit complaints.

Bogus top-of-the-line brand purses, belts, shoes and watches were being sold as designer labels such as Gucci and Prada. At the AHBS clothing store, Deputies also found 34 fake Rolex watches on sale. In all, almost 3,000 items worth one million dollars were seized.

Investigators also found 225 bogus product labels that were used to tag the counterfeit items making them to appear to be the name brand.

Deputies arrested clerks at both of the establishments. Aziz Kane, 40, was working at the Hip Hop store. Moussa Sarr, 35, was taken into custody at the AHBS store. They face a felony charge of Criminal Simulation over $60,000.

Aziz Kane	Boubacar Ba
Claude Jackson	Moussa Sarr

Deputies also arrested the owners of both stores. The owners were not at the stores during the time of the raid. However, Deputies caught up with them this morning while they were making court appearances for similar charges they allegedly committed a year ago.

Claude Jackson, 32, who owns the Hip Hop store and Boubacar Ba, 29, the owner of the AHBS store, were both charged with Criminal Simulation over $60,000.

So far this year, 78 people have been arrested by the Sheriff’s Office ALERT Team. More than $18,196 in stolen property has been recovered and returned to area stores and theft victims. Almost one and a quarter MILLION dollars in counterfeit property has been seized so far this year by ALERT Team investigators.