Indian-origin woman convicted in UK for role in counterfeit clothing racket

An Indian-origin woman has been convicted by a British court for her role in running a counterfeit clothing factory in Leicester.

A Punjab-origin woman and an Asian man were given one-year suspended prison sentences after being convicted by the Birmingham crown court for their role in running a counterfeit clothing factory in Leicester, east Midlands.

Tarsem Kaur and Altaf Sattar pleaded guilty to 22 offences of counterfeiting under the Trade Marks Act, officials said. (Reuters File)

Tarsem Kaur, 46, and Altaf Sattar, 60, pleaded guilty to a total of 22 offences of counterfeiting under the Trade Marks Act, officials in Leicester said.

In all, officials found 6,143 counterfeit labels and swing tags for clothing and 894 completed garments. They included 14 brands such as Nike, Superdry, UGG, Henri Lloyd, Lacoste and North Face – all with an estimated street value of £150,000.

Some of the clothing was found packed into boxes and ready to go, while a large quantity of child-size Adidas-branded clothing was found partially made on sewing machines. Kaur was arrested at the scene, and Sattar arrested later.

The court was told the counterfeit clothing was being sold at markets elsewhere in the UK.