Following a previous Dorset Trading Standards investigation in 2020 into a business selling counterfeit vinyl records worldwide, Richard Hutter, trading as ‘Vinyl Groove’, pleaded guilty to fourteen offences under the Trade Marks Act 1994, Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, and Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.
Mr. Hutter was finally sentenced in Bournemouth Crown Court in April 2023, where the court heard that he had benefitted from his crimes to the tune of over £1.2 million. He had to produce details of his assets, and the court ordered that he repay £373,589.64 within three months or face a three-month jail term in default.
Under the terms of the Confiscation Order, the remaining £900,633.20 would have to be paid by Mr. Hutter if any further assets were identified in the future. In July 2023, Mr. Hutter completed paying his confiscation, but Trading Standards noticed a discrepancy in the payments that led them to believe he may have further undisclosed assets.
As a result, Dorset Council’s Accredited Financial Investigator began a new confiscation investigation into his finances. This investigation found that Mr. Hutter had assets of £229,962.50 that were not declared at the previous hearing.
At a further hearing at Bournemouth Crown Court on October 16, 2024, Mr. Hutter was ordered to pay this additional sum within three months or face a three-year default sentence.
The money from proceeds of crime is reinvested by Dorset Council into further disruption and asset recovery work, and to help fund local crime-fighting priorities for the benefit of the community.
Cllr Gill Taylor, Dorset Council’s Cabinet Member for Health and Housing (including regulatory services such as Trading Standards), commented:
“When our Trading Standards team investigates cases where the perpetrator has made significant sums of money from their crimes, we will always seek to recover this through confiscation. If future assets are identified, we can apply to the courts to seize these until all the benefit from the crime has been recovered.
“Unfortunately, counterfeiting is often seen by criminals as a low-risk, high-reward crime. It is often linked to money laundering and can be used to help fund other serious crimes. It damages the UK economy, undermines the interests of legitimate businesses, and pushes up the cost to consumers of buying good quality genuine items. It is not a victimless crime.
“We are extremely pleased with this result, and I’d like to thank everyone involved for their hard work.”
To report sellers of counterfeit goods to Dorset Trading Standards, please contact the Citizens Advice Consumer Service.
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