Oakley Says Authorities Shut Down Counterfeiters

Oakley Inc., the Orange County maker of fashionable sunglasses, said that a major counterfeiting operation has been shut down following a six-week investigation.

The Carson-based counterfeiting ring, operating under the name Spenser Products, was broken up by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department in a raid last week, the company said.

About $10 million worth of copycat sunglasses, T-shirts, hats, computerized embroidery machines, printing equipment and other goods were seized.

“It was a multimillion-a-year business,” said Det. Brian McBride, who led the investigation for the Sheriff’s Department. Nearly 800,000 counterfeit items were found, McBride said. Besides the Oakley knockoffs, there were goods stamped with 16 other brand names, including DKNY, Mossimo, Ray Ban, Guess and Nike, he said.

Paul Lee, Spenser Products’ owner, was arrested and charged with 15 counts of counterfeiting federally registered trademarks. He faces up to 45 years in prison, if convicted on all counts. Lee, who has no previous criminal record, remains in custody on $500,000 bail, McBride said.

The company had about 20 employees, none of whom had charges filed against them.

The investigation began when Oakley learned about some counterfeit goods seized in Florida. One of their investigators, working with the Sheriff’s Department, traced the items back to Spenser Products.