Joshua Shores Sentenced to 60 Months for $2.5M Fraudulent Sports Memorabilia Scam

HARRISBURG – The gritty streets of Pennsylvania witnessed a pivotal moment in the battle against white-collar crime as Joshua Aaron Shores, the 44-year-old mastermind behind a $2.5 million sports memorabilia fraud scheme, was sentenced to 60 months’ imprisonment by United States District Court Judge John E. Jones, III.

Shores, who operated under several aliases and guises, including Dealakhan, LLC, Stadium Authentics, and others, was caught dealing in counterfeit sports memorabilia from 2008 to 2013. His fraudulent enterprises were based out of York County, Pennsylvania, and Maryland, where he trafficked in fake sports jerseys adorned with forged autographs and accompanied by fake certificates of authenticity.

The defendant’s modus operandi included the use of mailbox receiving services for business addresses, a network of PayPal and Amazon.com accounts under various names to receive customer payments, and bulk purchases of counterfeit sports apparel from China. Shores also opened over 80 bank accounts in five different financial institutions, some in his name and others without consent.

Today’s sentence was accompanied by a restitution order of $500,000 and a fine of $5,000. The defendant’s assets, including U.S. currency worth an estimated $140,000, were immediately forfeited. His prison term will be followed by a 2-year supervised release period.

The relentless investigation into Shores’ scheme was spearheaded by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Homeland Security Investigations, with Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Olshefski handling the prosecution.