A man from Bath has pleaded guilty to three charges under the Trade Marks Act 1994, for selling and possessing bottles of alcohol with counterfeit labels.
Bath Magistrates’ Court heard that between January and July 2013, Mr Bilal Sanci’s business sold various bottles of alcohol that had not been obtained from a legitimate source and showed a counterfeit UK duty stamp giving the impression that duty had been paid on these bottles when it had not.
Undercover Bath & North East Somerset Council Trading Standards officers purchased bottles then, on confirming they were counterfeit, seized items to ensure they did not remain on sale.
In sentencing Mr Sanci was told by the district judge that by abusing the Trade Mark system he sought to make a commercial advantage and put the public in danger.
He was ordered to pay a fine of £795 + £450 costs to the Council.
Speaking after the court case, Cllr David Dixon (Lib Dem, Oldfield), Bath & North East Somerset Council’s Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods said: “Our Trading Standards team works hard to protect local people from counterfeit goods.
“Items bought from an unofficial source always carry the risk that they are substandard and have not been through the quality procedures required from legitimate manufacturers.
“Illegal alcohol should be avoided at all cost. It may have been made in unlicensed distilleries or even people’s homes. You don’t know what is in it and you cannot be sure of the strength of it.
“It may contain cheaper types of alcohol, such as the type used to make cleaning fluids or nail polish, which could lead to serious illness.”
