Nike and Adidas trainers among hundreds of fake shoes seized from Kent market

An undercover sting operation by East Sussex Trading Standards led to hundreds of fake designer shoes being seized and two brothers convicted of trade mark theft.

Officers visited the market in Rye following a tip-off that items being sold by Sukhdeav and Hardev Singh, were not genuine.

Brands seized included counterfeit Adidas, Converse, Timberland, Dior, Prada, Reebok, Balenciaga, Michael Kors, Nike, Ugg, Chanel, Fendi and Valentino, with a total retail value if genuine of over £210,000.

The brothers were caught when Trading Standards officers made a test purchase in October and a further visit in December 2021 when more than 1,000 pairs of fake footwear were seized.

Sukhdeav Singh, 57, was sentenced to four-months in prison, suspended for a year to run concurrently. He will also have to carry out 80 hours of unpaid work.

Recorder Brock said: “You said you bought [the counterfeit footwear] believing them to be legitimate but didn’t carry out sufficient checks.

“I… find that the offending is so serious that only a custodial sentence is appropriate.”

His brother, Hardev Singh, of Maidstone Road in Rochester, Kent was given a 12 months’ community order and ordered to undertake 150 hours unpaid work.

Andrew Clooney, East Sussex Trading Standards team manager, said: “Selling counterfeit goods not only breaches trade marks legislation but harms the trade of legitimate suppliers and damages consumer confidence.

“These convictions are another warning to those involved in the sale of fake goods that we are committed to prosecuting those who persist in this illegal activity.”