Published: September 04, 2008 10:45 pm      

West End store sold counterfeit goods, police say

A store in Johnstown’s West End has been peddling hundreds of counterfeit movies along with fake shoes, purses, handbags and sunglasses, police said.

Employees at Smoke ’N Jokes, 245 Strayer St., also are accused of selling pornography and tobacco to juveniles.

“It was part of an ongoing investigation,” city police Chief Craig Foust said Thursday. “We were conducting controlled buys and surveillance.”

Three men have been charged in connection with an investigation and subsequent police raid at the store:

• Rasheed H. Lawton, 27, of the 300 block of Strayer Street.

• Demarko M. Sutter, 31, of the 100 block of Strayer Street.

• Vinzeal T. Wolf, 36, of the 500 block of Ash Street.

Police executed a search warrant at the business Wednesday and said they found about 300 counterfeit – or illegally copied – DVDs. Also seized were “computers and related equipment to manufacture said movies,” a criminal affidavit says.

Movies allegedly for sale at the store included “Hellboy II” and “Baby Mama,” which are not yet legally available on DVD. Counterfeit music CDs also were found, court documents show.

Police said they also saw shoes and purses with fake Louis Vuitton labels as well as shoes bearing false Coach labels.

The department used undercover officers and confidential informants to buy items at the store, which had “obscene material that was clearly visible to minors,” court papers say.

In one instance, police said a

17-year-old operating under police supervision bought two pornographic movies, a counterfeit copy of “Baby Mama” and two flavored cigars.

The juvenile was not asked to show identification, police said. The 17-year-old reported that the clerk also tried to sell a pair of Oakley sunglasses for $5.

Foust said police decided that the store, which is in a residential area, should be a “high-priority target” during the investigation.

“We felt it was important to take action,” he said.