THE council has issued a warning to anyone involved with counterfeit goods after a tech company was fined £113,000 for selling fake Apple products.

Cheshire West and Chester Council's Trading standards team prosecuted Andrew Twigg and Northwich-based Twigg Tech Limited following an undercover investigation.

Trading standards officers carried out a test purchase in relation to the sale of counterfeit Apple accessories being sold online.

Between October 2015 and October 2018, the company had a turnover in excess of £960,000.

The declared taxable profit over that three-year period was more than £108,000. The prosecution case was that a significant proportion of items sold by the company were counterfeit, with unauthorised Apple logos on them.

During a search of the defendant’s home carried out carried out by police and trading standards in April 2019, 5,147 items were seized, of which just under 95 per cent (4,876) were found to be fake.

The defendant’s computers were forensically analysed by trading standards and found to contain text messages which showed the defendant had an awareness of trademark and safety issues.

Twigg, of Manor Drive, Barnton, and the company, appeared for sentence at Chester Crown Court on Friday, having previously pleaded guilty to the trademark and safety offences.

The 37-year-old received a two-year suspended sentence, 250 hours of unpaid work and his company was fined a total of £113,000.

The council’s deputy leader and cabinet member for environment, highways and strategic transport, Councillor Karen Shore said: “Counterfeiting is an illegal activity which affects the livelihoods of legitimate, hardworking businesses.

"I would ask Cheshire West residents to seriously think twice about supporting this kind of activity.

“Buying counterfeit goods on-line may appear to be an attractive and cheap alternative but they are, by their very nature, inferior products and are often unsafe.

“We will take action against anyone found selling counterfeit products in our borough.”

A proceeds of crime hearing will also take place regarding this case in the future.