Posted on 10/13/2006 9:47:22 PM PDT by ConservativeStatement
When Juan Penton took the witness stand this week, he described himself as a Hialeah carpenter who made wooden cigar boxes stamped ''made in Cuba'' to sell as novelty gifts.
But on Friday, a dozen Miami federal jurors found him guilty of selling $3,000 worth of counterfeit cigars in those imitation boxes.
They concluded he was essentially copying famous Cuban cigar trademarks such as Montecristo, which are registered in the United States by its largest cigar producer.
The David-and-Goliath legal tale pitted Penton not only against the U.S. government but also the giant cigar company that funded part of the criminal investigation, Fort Lauderdale-based Altadis U.S.A.
(Excerpt) Read more at miami.com ...
Even as a former resident of Miami, this seemed convoluted to me. :-)
Counterfeit cigar ring busted in Miami
Los Angeles, December 19 – Eight people were arrested last Thursday in the culmination of a six-month investigation into the sale of counterfeit cigars, sold to the public as Cuban made.
The Miami-Dade Police Department, working in conjunction with the Florida Attorney General, U.S. Secret Service and U.S. Postal Inspector, seized more than $100,000 of counterfeit cigars and related items.
The Associated Press quoted Miami-Dade police spokeswoman Nelda Fonticiella concerning the nature of the program: “It was a network-type operation. Some owned the print shop that would print up the bands. The other ones were building the cigar boxes.”
I fart on both the same face judge an irs.
see post #4
irs; red cloud- afir emess.
" don't understand how a Cuban Company can register a trademark in the U.S. "
pretty sure the major brands are trademarked in the US by the producers in the dominican republic of the same names, thus those parties would have the right to sue over trademark issues, especially if (I don't know) some involved companies were previous holders of trademarks in cuba pre-castro.
Sounds like the guy who went to jail for selling fake counterfeit.
Is it illegal to sell fake cocaine?
By definition it is. Heaven forbid that the rabble ever figure that much out for themselves.
Yes.
El Bubblicious?
KRAMER: Hey, here they are. The Cubans. Real Cubans.
HAFFLER: You wouldn't be trying to sell old Earl Haffler Dominicans in a Cuban wrapper now, would you?
KRAMER: Oh, now, come on. Look at these boys. If they were any more Cuban, Castro would've smoked them himself. Huh.
HAFFLER: We're talking about people, right?
KRAMER: I think so.
HAFFLER: I thought he quit smoking cigars.
KRAMER: Well, yeah, yeah. But they also rolled for his brother......Dennis.
HAFFLER: Dennis Castro?
KRAMER: Uh, Dwayne.
HAFFLER: Get the hell outta my office.
"By counterfeiting these products he competes with smugglers who put money back into Castro's treasury by selling the real thing."
virtually no authentic cuban cigars are sold on location on US soil. too much trouble for too little profit. If you see one for sale in the US, it is fake.
"Is it illegal to sell fake cocaine?"
Yup...at least in Illinois it sure as hell is.
Oh heck....who needs Cubans now a days. Why, there are some damned fine Dominican, Honduran, and Nicaraguan cigars out there. I'm a huge Arturo Fuente fan....the Opus X....the Hemingway Series....the Don Carlos selections....superb!!!
I've been trying to find the super intesne La Gloria Cubana's that Rush says he loves....hard to find boogers
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