My mate got caught out in a similar scam to this. He bought the clubs directly from a guy after meeting him in person. They were a set of Nike clubs and looked perfect. It wasn't until he used them on the course that he realised summit was up. Needless to say there was no comeback or customer service after the purchase! Beware.
THE RINGLEADER of a gang behind a “highly sophisticated and profitable” multimillion-euro operation to sell fake golf clubs on eBay has been jailed for more than four years.
The global conspiracy, described as the largest fraud of its kind uncovered on the popular auction website, unravelled only when a British pensioner complained to her local council’s trading standards team.
Most of the counterfeit clubs were made in China and then distributed around the world through an international network of criminals, a court in London heard.
Prosecutors described the operation to sell the fake clubs and other merchandise through eBay between June 2003 and March 2008 as “a conspiracy of a truly global nature”.
The conspirators sold tens of thousands of items of golf equipment and more than €2.5 million was paid into their PayPal accounts during this period.
Mastermind Gary Bellchambers (46), was at the heart of the scam, and recruited others to help, including his sister Sharron Williams (49), and ex-business partner Roy Cottee (66).
The prosecution was brought by Havering Council in east London after pensioner Christine Manz complained about two fake Acushnet clubs she bought from Bellchambers on eBay.
She and her husband were unhappy about the quality of the clubs and tried to get a refund.
The fraudsters usually did so without hesitation to avoid attracting attention from the authorities, but Manz’s letters went unanswered because Bellchambers was away in Thailand at the time.
The council then launched an investigation, codenamed Operation Augusta.
Bellchambers, from Rainham, Essex, pleaded guilty to involvement in the conspiracy along with Keith Thomas (50), also of Rainham, and Chris Moughton (56), from Blackpool.
Bellchambers – whose ex-wife, Theresa, lives with Thomas – also admitted the unauthorised use of trademarks in relation to counterfeit Qantas business class lounge invitation cards and Sony memory sticks.
Bellchambers was jailed for four years and three months, with a recommendation to serve half the sentence in custody.
Thomas was sentenced to 16 months, with an order to serve half in custody.
Moughton received a 19-week sentence, suspended for 12 months, with a three-month tagged curfew to remain at home between 8pm and 7am.
Four others were found guilty in December of conspiring to sell or distribute counterfeit golf clubs, clothing and accessories.
Passing sentence, Judge Jacqueline Beech said: “In this case, the counterfeit goods purported to be highly technical pieces of sports equipment. Many millions of pounds have been spent by Achusnet, Calloway and Cleveland, the main brands concerned in this case, in developing the clubs, and to a lesser extent the clothing.
“When a golfer purchases clubs bearing a brand name or trade mark, they are paying for years of research and development and for a golf club that represents the cutting edge of sports equipment technology.
“The expectation is that the clubs will help them improve their game or certainly not make it worse. Neither was it the case that the clubs were being sold for a fraction of the cost of the genuine products.”
Mark Lewis, of eBay UK, said: “Trust is at the heart of everything we do and so when, on occasion, that trust is abused by a small minority, we work tirelessly to ensure that they will not get away with it.”
Mike Rider of Callaway said: “Unfortunately, we estimate annual sales of counterfeit golf equipment is between $4 billion and $6 billion (€3 billion and €4.2 billion). Counterfeiters’ interests lie solely in stealing a product’s exterior cosmetics and consumers’ money. We’re pleased these individuals were brought to justice
[QUOTE=TedCrilly;2161737]My mate got caught out in a similar scam to this. He bought the clubs directly from a guy after meeting him in person. They were a set of Nike clubs and looked perfect. It wasn't until he used them on the course that he realised summit was up. Needless to say there was no comeback or customer service after the purchase! Beware.
Mastermind Gary Bellchambers (46), was at the heart of the scam, and recruited others to help, including his sister Sharron Williams (49), and ex-business partner Roy Cottee (66).
I'll bet Roy's cursing the day he got mixed up in this.
I'll bet Roy's cursing the day he got mixed up in this.
(Does anyone get that)
I got it DR! Though I'm not sure whether I should be admitting that. For the purposes of the thread it's a bloody shame his name wasn't Ross, isn't it?
I got it DR! Though I'm not sure whether I should be admitting that. For the purposes of the thread it's a bloody shame his name wasn't Ross, isn't it?
In the absence of a Ross, I had to settle for an obscure Roy joke. You must be a very sharp individual and you're an aptly named contributor to this thread...
You have to wonder if this was his only scam or maybe he had other irons in the fire?
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I saw the advert on my TV screen
Slimline drinks and Tetley tea
Exploit the accent of the flat capped men
Like Hell the North will rise again
The comradeship of drinking ale
The workers' revolution failed
Too pissed on shit to notice it
Never mind, wear it if it fits
My sister was going to buy clubs from ebay but this story will putter off.
It sure was a rough deal, it would drive you mad. You need to have an eagle eye for these bogey deals.
If someone sold me fake clubs, I'd bloody swing for them.
Best one so far that. Repped.
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Originally Posted by Red Nick If you have ever had sex with a Russian women you never go back, The women from Cordoba and Sevilla are some of the most beautiful in the world But Russians, Ukranians and girls from Belarus are light years ahead of the rest. They might not be enjoying it but they let you think they are.
