Chinese National Arrested in $23.8 Million Scheme to Sell Counterfeit Laptop Computer Batteries on
Chinese National Arrested in $23.8 Million Scheme to Sell Counterfeit Laptop Computer Batteries on eBay and Amazon
LOS ANGELES A San Gabriel Valley man was arrested today on federal criminal charges that he participated in a $23.8 million scheme to manufacture and ship counterfeit laptop computer batteries and other electronics from China to the United States, where the bogus batteries were sold to unsuspecting buyers in online marketplaces.
Zoulin Cai, a.k.a. Allen Cai, 28, of La Puente, was arrested at his residence this morning on a federal grand jury indictment unsealed today. He is scheduled to be arraigned on the indictment this afternoon in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles.
The three-count indictment alleges that Cai, a Chinese national who moved to Los Angeles County in 2012, worked for Shenzhen Theseus Technology Co. Ltd., a China-based company. Theseus Technology, which was owned and operated by Cais relatives, manufactured counterfeit lithium-ion batteries, some of which were designed for laptop computers.
Cai and his co-conspirators sold and shipped the counterfeit batteries to unsuspecting individual buyers via eBay and Amazon, falsely advertising them as brand-name new, genuine, original, or OEM (original equipment manufacturer) products, the indictment alleges. The batteries allegedly bore counterfeit trademarks of companies such as Apple, Dell, HP, and Toshiba, as well as counterfeit certification marks of UL, a company that tests and certifies the safety of electronic products.
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https://www.justice.gov/usao-cdca/pr/chinese-national-arrested-238-million-scheme-sell-counterfeit-laptop-computer-batteries