Pantip Plaza retailers charged of counterfeiting
More than 100 counterfeit Canon battery grips and camera batteries worth a total of Bt100,000 were found during a raid of retail shops at Pantip Plaza on Nov 1.
In a statement issued by Tilleke & Gibbins, Canon's lawyer, the raid was led by representatives of Canon Kabushiki Kaisha in collaboration with police officers from the Economic Crime Division, led by Pol Lt Col Chaiwat Pradabthai, and officers from the Department of Intellectual Property, under a search warrant issued by the Central Intellectual Property and International Trade Court.
The owners of the shops were charged with trademark infringement offenses, which carry a maximum penalty of four years of imprisonment or a fine of Bt400,000, or both.
“Canon is strongly committed to stamping out the presence of fake Canon battery grips and Canon camera batteries in the Thai market,” said Cyril Chua, partner of ATMD Bird & Bird, Singapore, the representative of Canon. “This raid was the latest in our ongoing efforts to ensure that Thai consumers are not harmed by the criminal activities of infringers, as fake batteries can overheat, for example, causing damage to users.”
