New York man charged with trafficking in counterfeit goods

WHEELING, W. Va. — A New York man has been charged with bringing counterfeit goods to Wheeling to sell at a Christmas show last November. The arrest follows an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Mountaineer Highway Interdiction Team (MHIT).

Xian Chen Chen, 37, was charged in a nine-count with trafficking in counterfeit goods. According to court documents, on November 13, 2013, Chen attempted to traffic goods containing counterfeit marks, including goods purported to be from Beats Electronics, LLC, Chanel Inc., Coach Services Inc., Gucci America Inc., Louis Vuitton Malletier, Michael Kors, LLC, The North Face Apparel Corp., Tiffany (NJ), LLC and Tory Burch, LLC. The marks are registered for those goods on the principal register of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the use of which being likely to cause confusion, mistake and to deceive.

Chen faces up to 10 years in prison on each count.

A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The task force is comprised of officers and agents from the West Virginia State Police, the Ohio County Sheriff's Department, the Wheeling Police Department, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. It is made possible by funds from the Appalachia High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (AHIDTA).