Federal court in Boston handed down a sentence last month to a Chelsea resident convicted of trafficking counterfeit merchandise through three retail businesses in the Boston area.
Arif Ali Shah, 66, received a sentence from U.S. District Court Judge William G. Young that includes 18 months in prison, two years of supervised release, a $5,000 fine, and restitution of $145,531. Shah entered a guilty plea in May 2017 to one count of trafficking in counterfeit goods.
Between approximately 2005 and February 2015, Shah operated three retail stores where he sold counterfeit merchandise: Nadia’s in Dorchester; East Boston Wireless in East Boston; and Todo Wireless in Chelsea. Counterfeit Apple, Samsung, and Speck components were sold at all three locations. Additionally, Shah offered counterfeit apparel and accessories from brands such as Chanel, Michael Kors, Nike, Prada, Timberland, and Uggs. The counterfeit merchandise came from both foreign and domestic sources, with certain counterfeit cell phone components obtained from domestic supplier Flexqueen, whose owner faced prosecution in California.
The announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney William Weinreb and Matthew Etre, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston. Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Harman Burkart, working with Weinreb’s Cybercrime Unit, handled the prosecution.