Crackdown Continues On Illegal DVD And CD Sales In Southall

The Safer Ealing Partnership (Ealing Council and Ealing Borough police) has now seized approximately £50,000 worth of Illegal DVD and CD’s from the same business premise in King Street, Southall in the space of Eight (8) days. 

On Thursday 21st April 2005, at 4:30pm the Southall Broadway Safer Neighbourhoods Team in partnership with Ealing Council Trading Standards Officers visited the business premise for a second time and seized

- 5,000 counterfeit CDs (approximately); - 1,000 illegal DVDs (approximately); - a large quantity of blank recordable CDs and CD cases; - a large quantity of blank recordable DVD's; - two CD rewriteable machines; - a DVD player 

The seizure has an estimated street value of £20,000.

The first occasion the partnership visited the premise was on Wednesday 13th April 2005 where the partnership seized approximately 9,000 illegal DVD’s and CD’s, which has an estimated street value of £30,000

This latest seizure included CD soundtracks from Bollywood Movies and Asian artists such as Lucky, Punjabi MC, Gurdas Mann and Adnan Sami. The seizure also included DVD titles Bollywood Movies such as Lucky, Beaafa, Karam, and Tango Charlie.

The partnership visited the premise on both occasions following intelligence and information received from a variety of sources including the community, which indicated that it was involved in the sale and distribution of illegal, and counterfeit DVDs and CDs.

A 19-year-old Asian male was arrested during the latest operation for offences relating to the Trades Mark Act 1994, Video Recording Act 1984/1993 and the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988

Trading Standards Officers and the police will now be attempting to trace the owner of the business. If they succeed, they will then investigate him for offences relating to the same acts.

Since March 2004, Ealing Borough Police and Ealing Council’s Trading Standards Service have had great success in combating the illegal trading issue in Ealing Borough. 

In total they have visited over 90 premises, seized over 150,000 items such as DVDs and CDs and prosecuted ten people. The police and council have several more prosecutions pending in their fight against copyright theft.

Mohammed Tariq, who is on secondment from Birmingham City Council Trading Standards and the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), to Ealing Council Trading Standards states:

"Offenders and businesses need to know that ignoring the law will not stop the police and ourselves visiting and re-visiting premises and ultimately prosecuting offenders who continue to break the law in this way."

Police Sergeant Shahid Malik, Southall Broadway Safer Neighbourhoods Team states:

"We will continue to gather intelligence and evidence against people who continue to break the law to combat this sort of offence. We are fully committed to targeting and ultimately stopping local crime networks that are involved in counterfeit sales and distribution in Southall."

Doug Love, Head of Trading Standards Offices Ealing Council added:

"Ealing Council is committed to stamping out illegal trading in the borough. In partnership with the police we'll be keeping up our presence on the streets and any illegal goods for sale we find, we'll remove." 

If you have information on the sales of illegal DVD’s or CD’s in Southall please contact 

Southall Broadway Safer Neighbourhoods Team on 020-8721-2771

Southall Green Safer Neighbourhoods Team on 020-8721-2047

Or

Ealing Borough Council Trading Standards Office on 020-8825-6888

Alternatively you could contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111

In an Emergency always dial 999.

OFFENCES
Trades Mark Act 1994: Unlimited Fine or 10 years in prison

Video Recording Act 1984/1993: Maximum fine £20,000 per offence
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988: Unlimited Fine or 10yrs in prison