Toledo man sentenced to prison for trafficking counterfeit goods of major sports brands

TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) – A Toledo man was sentenced to prison on Tuesday for trafficking counterfeit goods of major sports brands.

According to the Department of Justice, U.S. District Judge Jack Zouhary sentenced Shane Burdue, 46, of Toledo, to 14 months in prison for trafficking counterfeit goods which included brands such as Nike, MLB, NBA and NFL. He was also ordered to serve two years of probation and pay $4,081.50 in restitution to the Coalition to Advance Protection of Sports Logos.

According to court documents, Burdue began receiving international shipments of counterfeit goods in July 2014. Between 2014 and 2023, more than 800 international shipments, mostly from China, were headed for various addresses which were associated with Burdue in Toledo. Several of the shipments were seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

DOJ says Burdue also received numerous Cease-and-Desist letters from CAPS, an alliance that coordinates trademark protection and enforcement matters for collegiate and national sports teams. Despite the seizures and the Cease-and-Desist letters, Burdue continued to sell the counterfeit merchandise at different locations throughout Toledo, as well as online through Facebook.

Court documents show several of Burdue’s Facebook accounts were deactivated following the discovery that he was selling counterfeit goods. Each time an account was deactivated, Burdue would create a new account and resume selling.

In May 2023, authorities seized hundreds of items of counterfeit sports merchandise from Burdue’s business, “Shane’s Man Cave,” during a search warrant execution. The items that were seized include counterfeit caps, jerseys and footwear, totaling more than $29,000 in Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price.

DOJ says the counterfeit merchandise violated intellectual property rights from Nike, Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association and the National Football League.

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