San Diego Counterfeit Raid Turns Up Sean John, Baby Phat And More

Article written by: Rodrick Rainey
Posted on: November 18, 2005

Authorities arrested 16 people and seized about $130,000 worth of counterfeit clothes and pirated music and movies yesterday in a raid on a San Diego indoor flea market.

Investigators swarmed Fam Mart on Euclid Avenue in the Webster neighborhood about noon and spent hours filling vans with confiscated goods.

The building manager was arrested along with a business manager and men and women who were operating 11 independent sales booths, Deputy City Attorney Mikini Hammond said.

“They will be booked into jail on multiple counts of felony trademark violations and piracy,” Hammond said.

An August gang-related shooting in the Fam Mart parking lot prompted a joint investigation by San Diego police and the Drug Abatement Response Team led by Hammond.

“We looked at why the gangs were drawn to the property and it was that counterfeit business sales were going on inside,” Hammond said. “People were selling things in the parking lot and at some point they decided to sell illegal things outside as well as inside.

“There was a van on the premises where you could put in an order (for an illegal copy of a music CD) and it would be made for you. Things were getting out of hand in the summer.”

Undercover agents purchased counterfeit items yesterday morning and warrants were served a few hours later. Joining the raid were customs agents and agents from the Motion Picture Association of America and the Recording Industry Association of America.

Hammond said thousands of CDs and DVDs, valued at about $70,000, and $60,000 worth of counterfeit clothes were seized. Fakes included Baby Phat, Sean John and Phat Farm brands along with professional sports team apparel.