WARREN, Mich. (WXYZ) — A major operation in Macomb County has led to seven people being charged and hundreds of thousands of dollars seized.
Search warrants in both Sterling Heights and Warren led to the discovery of over 2,000 counterfeit items mimicking designer brands like Gucci, Chanel, Louis Vuitton and more.
The counterfeit items and $100,000 cash were seized by the Warren Police Department, the result of an investigation that started in May at the County Line Trade Center flea market near 8 Mile Road and Dequindre Road.
“It’s a very large-scale operation and quite frankly, it's not over yet," Warren Police Department Commissioner William Dwyer said. “This is just a first phase of the operation and I think what we are going to do in the future is going to be very successful for these type of crimes.”
Along with the flea market where the items were being sold, two homes were searched leading to the massive discovery.
"It’s huge. This is a significant case,” Macomb County Prosecutor Peter Lucido said. "It (counterfeiting) is something that's done, but not at this mass level."
Lucido says the seven people charged each face a five-year felony. Two of the defendants are over the age of 70.
“By counterfeiting goods and distributing them in the line of commerce, that is taking advantage of individuals. That is a fraud and at the end of the day, we don’t want that kind of activity in Macomb County,” Lucido said.
Both Lucido and Dwyer say this case is not over yet and the overall investigation is still moving forward.
“(There are) indications that this money that was obtained as a result of these goods are leaving the country, so there’s more to come from this story,” Lucido said.
Six of the seven people being charged were arraigned Tuesday in the 37th District Court in Warren. Dwyer says they’re still searching for the seventh suspect.
