Queens Auto Parts Dealer Convicted of Trademark Counterfeiting

Queens County District Attorney Richard A. Brown announced that a Long Island City wholesale auto parts dealer has been convicted of trademark counterfeiting for dealing in counterfeit Ford auto parts that were packaged, labeled and distributed as Ford manufacturer-quality replacement parts. District Attorney Brown identified the defendant as Mordekhay Levy, 43, of 455 Hungry Harbor Road in North Woodmere, Long Island. Levy, the owner of Black and Yellow Auto Parts Inc., located at 5-35 54th Avenue in Long Island City, was convicted of two counts of second-degree trademark counterfeiting. Justice Arthur J. Cooperman, who presided at the eight-day jury trial, set sentencing for June 27. The defendant faces up to four years in prison on each count.

From MEMA Industry News/Queens County, N.Y., District Attorney

QUEENS, N.Y. — Queens County District Attorney Richard A. Brown announced that a Long Island City wholesale auto parts dealer has been convicted of trademark counterfeiting for dealing in counterfeit Ford auto parts that were packaged, labeled and distributed as Ford manufacturer-quality replacement parts.

District Attorney Brown said, “Trademark counterfeiting is neither a victimless nor harmless crime. Operations such as that run by the defendant fuel an underground economy. They are cash businesses that pay no taxes and rip off both the consumer and the industry by foisting inferior products into the marketplace. Such unauthorized products, which often come from offshore, steal jobs from American workers and revenue from American manufacturers.”

District Attorney Brown identified the defendant as Mordekhay Levy, 43, of 455 Hungry Harbor Road in North Woodmere, Long Island. Levy, the owner of Black and Yellow Auto Parts Inc., located at 5-35 54th Avenue in Long Island City, was convicted of two counts of second-degree trademark counterfeiting. Justice Arthur J. Cooperman, who presided at the eight-day jury trial, set sentencing for June 27. The defendant faces up to four years in prison on each count.

District Attorney Brown said that in October 2005, officers assigned to the District Attorney’s NYPD Detective Squad executed a court-authorized search warrant prepared by the District Attorney’s Economic Crimes Bureau at Black and Yellow Auto Parts. Detectives recovered more than $200,000 in cash and four truckloads of counterfeit Ford automobile parts, including intake manifolds, sway bars, brake pads and rotors, fuel pumps, water pumps, master cylinders, grille assemblies, mirrors and taillights. In July 2006, a search warrant was again executed on Black and Yellow Auto Parts and detectives seized hundreds of additional counterfeit Ford Motor Company parts.

The District Attorney expressed his appreciation to Ford Motor Co. and its Brand Protection and Trademark Law Departments for their assistance in the investigation. The investigation was conducted by the District Attorney’s NYPD Detective Squad – namely, Detective David Gilbert – under the supervision of Captain John Zanfardino, Squad Commander, and Sergeant Frank Horvath and the overall supervision of Chief of Detectives George Brown. The District Attorney’s Detective Bureau, under the supervision of Lawrence Festa, chief investigator, and Albert Velardi, deputy chief investigator, assisted in the investigation.

Assistant District Attorney Mariana Zelig of the District Attorney’s Economic Crimes Bureau, prosecuted the case under the supervision of Assistant District Attorneys Gregory Pavlides, bureau chief, and Christina Hanophy, deputy bureau chief, and the overall supervision of Executive District Attorney for Investigations Peter Crusco and Deputy Executive Assistant District Attorney for Investigations Linda Cantoni.