13 November 2007 - She Should Have Used eBay Like The Rest Of Them

On 13 November 2007, the Magistrate's Court in Belfast fined a local jeweller £500 for selling counterfeit football memorabilia. The owner, Anne Lauro of Kavanagh's, also had to pay £37 in court costs and received a conditional 18-month discharge.

Following up on complaints lodged by some Scottish clubs, authorities inspected Mrs. Lauro's premises in December 2006 and located a total of 53 items bearing the names and logos of clubs such as Leeds United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Rangers, Celtic and Manchester United. Representatives from each of the affected clubs identified the merchandise--which included rings, cigarette lighters, hip flasks, tankards and pendants--as counterfeit (unlike the presumably authentic cuff links in the photo at right).

Ms. Lauro was convicted on 10 charges of selling counterfeit goods and was fined £100 for the first 5 charges, then given a conditional discharge on the remaining 5 charges.