JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A Columbia couple has been handed stiff federal sentences for their role in a brazen scheme to traffic counterfeit Disney DVDs on eBay.
Tabitha Nicole Rodgers, 43, was sentenced to four years in federal prison without parole, while her husband, Clint Travis Rodgers, 49, received a one-year sentence. Tabitha also faced $26,573 in restitution for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits she fraudulently claimed.
The Rodgers’ scheme was exposed after Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) discovered they had received over 443 shipments of counterfeit DVDs from Hong Kong, with one shipment containing 200 fake ‘Beauty and the Beast’ discs and another with 260 counterfeits of ‘Aladdin’.
Undercover agents purchased several counterfeit Disney DVDs from the couple, who falsely claimed they were genuine. Their home was raided in August 2015, where HSI agents seized a trove of counterfeit goods, including more than 200 fake Disney DVDs.
Tabitha Rodgers admitted running the day-to-day operations, communicating with suppliers in Hong Kong, and handling customer complaints regarding non-functional discs. Clint Rodgers assisted by recruiting others to sell the counterfeit products on eBay accounts canceled due to previous sales of fake merchandise.
This case marks a significant victory for intellectual property rights enforcement, as Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Lynn prosecuted the couple, with investigations led by HSI and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
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Key Facts
- State: Missouri
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes|Cybercrime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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