Saad Ahmed, Trafficking Counterfeit Electronics, California 2019

A Las Vegas businessman has admitted to running a years-long conspiracy to import counterfeit electronics from China into the United States.

Saad Ahmed, 32, owns and operates PhonePartsUSA, a Las Vegas, Nevada-based company that sells cellular telephone parts and other electronics throughout the United States.

As part of his plea agreement, Ahmed acknowledged conspiring with a variety of individuals in China to bring counterfeit cell phone parts and accessories from China to the United States.

The conspiracy stretched back to at least September 2012, according to court documents.

PhonePartsUSA trafficked $1,499,999 worth of counterfeit goods during this period, per Ahmed’s plea agreement.

The phony merchandise bore trademarks from Samsung, Apple and the electronic quality certification company UL, but were actually inauthentic copies.

Ahmed agreed to pay restitution to the three trademark holders in an amount totaling $269,681, which constituted the net proceeds received by Ahmed’s business from trafficking in the counterfeit merchandise.

Ahmed also agreed not to contest the forfeiture of 4,453 cell phone parts and accessories seized from PhonePartsUSA as part of a search by Homeland Security Investigations last summer.

Ahmed is scheduled to be sentenced on December 9, 2019, before U.S. District Judge Thomas Whelan.

Defendant:

Saad Ahmed, 32, Las Vegas, NV

Criminal Charges:

Conspiracy to Traffic in Counterfeit Goods - Title 18, U.S.C., Sections 371 & 2320(a)

Maximum penalty: Five years in prison, $250,000 fine (or twice the pecuniary gain or loss), restitution and forfeiture.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdca/pr/las-vegas-businessman-admits-trafficking-more-1-million-counterfeit-electronics