Mohamed Elkady, Trafficking in Counterfeit Goods, California 2017

Two California men are paying the price for flooding South Dakota malls with knockoff gear. Mohamed Elkady, 30, and Fady Youssef Abdelmalek, 34, were sentenced on January 30, 2017, by Chief Judge Jeffrey L. Viken in U.S. District Court for trafficking in counterfeit goods, following a two-year scheme that targeted unsuspecting shoppers.

The duo manufactured and peddled fake merchandise from kiosks in the Rushmore Mall in Rapid City and the Empire Mall in Sioux Falls between November 2014 and June 2015. Their operation duped customers into buying counterfeit apparel and accessories bearing the logos of major brands, including the National Football League, major motor vehicle manufacturers, and popular television show producers.

Charged on June 6, 2015, Elkady and Abdelmalek faced federal heat for profiting off stolen intellectual property. The fraud didn’t fly—authorities dismantled the scheme after a probe led by the Department of Homeland Security’s Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which uncovered the scale of the counterfeiting ring.

At sentencing, both men received time served and were slapped with a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. More significantly, they were ordered to pay $50,000 in joint restitution—a sum they had already paid in full before stepping into court, a rare move that may have influenced their lighter sentence.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah B. Collins prosecuted the case, emphasizing the economic harm counterfeiters inflict on legitimate businesses and consumers. “This wasn’t just cheap knockoffs—it was organized theft on display in plain sight,” Collins said in a post-sentencing statement.

U.S. Attorney Randolph J. Seiler confirmed the outcome, underscoring federal commitment to protecting intellectual property. The case serves as a warning: even small-time counterfeit kiosks can trigger federal investigations, convictions, and six-figure liabilities when they cross state lines and rip off national brands.

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