Store owner charged in sales of fakes
By Nick Hiltunen
Published in News on April 2, 2008 1:46 PM
A Goldsboro store owner accused of producing pirated DVD movies for sale at his Elm Street Store turned himself in Tuesday, authorities said.
Detective Lt. Carl Lancaster also said another city store owner targeted in raids last week was expected to turn himself in today.
Corey Feliciane Lewis, owner of The Urban Collection on East Elm Street, turned himself in at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, Lancaster said.
Lewis is charged with two felonies, one for producing the bogus DVDs, and another for selling them in his store, according to authorities.
Also sought by police is Ziad Assed Ismail, owner of Hip Hop Spot on North Spence Avenue, located in the Wal-Mart shopping complex there.
Ismail faces one felony related to counterfeit goods reportedly found in his store after a state agent spotted the items and reported them to the Wayne County Sheriff's Office.
Ismail, who reportedly was out of the country because of the death of a relative, was expected to turn himself in today, Lancaster said.
Between the two stores, authorities seized over $80,000 in counterfeit trademark goods, authorities reported.
Wayne County authorities say they are cracking down because sales of counterfeit goods have negative effects on legitimate enterprises.
The U.S. Department of Commerce estimates that over 750,000 Americans lose their jobs each year owed to indirect effects of sales of counterfeit goods.