Counterfeit DVD Bust in L.A. Fashion District
More than 5,000 illegally manufactured DVDs were seized by the Los Angeles Police Department during a recent raid on a Los Angeles Fashion District store on the 300 block of E. Ninth Street.
Police arrested four suspects and confiscated equipment allegedly used to make the illegal movies plus $2,000 in cash.
Police made the bust acting on a tip. The suspects were charged with felony failure to disclose true origin of a licensed product. Bail was set at $25,000.
“The suspects were burning the DVDs right under our noses,” said Lt. Paul Vernon, head of the Central Detective Division.
Vernon said the business fronted as a supply depot of illegal DVDs for downtown’s community of DVD peddlers, who can often be seen in Santee Alley selling recently released movies for $5 each.
The illegal movies cost the entertainment industry millions in lost revenues. Police have also linked the sales to funding gang activity, mainly for buying guns and drugs.
“What buyers don’t realize is their money is going toward a local gang, which charges the vendors rent to let them sell on the street,” Vernon added. “The gangs use the vendors’ alien status to intimidate them and take advantage. Few victims ever report the extortion.”
Last week, a local Fashion District security officer was assaulted by gang members in retaliation for seizing illegal DVDs abandoned by a vendor, Vernon said.
The MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) worked with the officers in seizing the DVDs.
“The LAPD places a very high priority on this type of activity,” said Kent Smith, executive director of the Fashion District. “The arrests are a testament to the work they are doing.”—Robert McAllister
