Federal agents raided three warehouses — Worldwide Auto Parts; S&S International Products and Manufacturing; and, Cypros Trading and Shipping — in Paterson which sold counterfeit car parts to unsuspecting consumers; all fake goods in the aforementioned locations have been sized by agents.

Shashi Malhotra, 67-year-old, of Norwood, NJ; Fadi Kilani, 28, of Englewood; and Richard Dininni, 57, of Easton, PA were all arrested on charges of  “conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit goods”; each man could get 5 to 10 years in prison if found guilty.  Of the three only the former two operated counter-fitting shops out of Paterson.

A statement released by the Federal Bureau of Investigation states, “the defendants and their co-conspirators deceptively packaged and caused to be packaged certain aftermarket automotive parts—including brakes, brake pads, brake shoes, ignition coils, water pumps, window regulators, suspension sway bar links, wheel hubs, anti-lock braking sensors, control arm bushings, transmission filters, pitman arms, tie rod ends, and suspension air springs—to falsely make it appear as though these parts had been manufactured by OEMs such as Ford Motor Company, General Motors, and Federal Mogul”. The shop owners purchased generic parts and plastered brand names on them to charge a premium rate.

A good deal of the fake parts were sold in the Northeast, but some were shipped elsewhere in the world: the FBI mentioned some of the counterfeit parts were shipped to Saudi Arabia.

It was after a long three year investigation that the FBI finally managed to nab the three. Last week Mr Malhotra was in the Paterson city council meeting seeking to renew his shop license which was approved by the council.