LEXMARK CONVICTS TONER CTG COUNTERFEITER

[Anonymous]

Lexmark applauds law enforcement authorities for success in conviction, prison sentence for counterfeiter of laser cartridges

LEXINGTON, Ky., SEPT.05 — Lexmark International,
Inc. today applauded the success of law enforcement authorities in
obtaining a conviction and prison sentence for an individual charged with
marketing counterfeit Lexmark laser cartridges.
    David C. Lasota Jr., convicted of trafficking in counterfeit goods and
using counterfeit marks in violation of federal law, was sentenced to 18
months in federal prison and ordered to pay restitution of $63,406.80 to
Lexmark.
    Based on records seized in a multi-state investigation, more than 13,000
counterfeit Lexmark toner cartridges were fraudulently marketed. Working with
Lexmark and Stumar Investigations, the Allegheny County Police Department in
Pennsylvania, the Clifton, New Jersey, Police Department, the Florida
Department of Law Enforcement and the United States Postal Inspection Service
issued multiple search warrants in an effort to stop the sale of these toner
cartridges.
    This case continues efforts by Lexmark over the past several years to
preserve the quality of the printing experience involving genuine, Lexmark-
branded equipment. Customers using counterfeit supplies products risk poorer
equipment performance, low supply yields, inferior print quality, toner or ink
leakage, high cartridge failure rates and increased equipment downtime – all
of which cost the customer time and money.
    “We applaud this successful prosecution and we thank the authorities
involved for demonstrating their commitment to protecting customers from these
fraudulent activities. Counterfeiting is a serious crime that defrauds
customers and we at Lexmark intend to do everything we can to support the
authorities in the arrest and conviction of the responsible parties,” said
Vincent J. Cole, Lexmark vice president and general counsel.
    Lexmark is a founding member of the Imaging Supplies Coalition (ISC),
which has launched a consumer-education initiative called “When in doubt,
check it out.”  To protect customers from being victimized, this program
allows those who question product quality or authenticity to submit products
anonymously to the ISC to determine if the supplies are counterfeit. Since the
inception of the program, the ISC says counterfeit awareness has increased
significantly among distribution channels.

[Author]

September 1, 2005 at 11:31 AM