A husband and wife who own a Los Angeles jewelry store were each sentenced on May 9 to 37 months in federal prison for illegally importing and selling counterfeit designer jewelry, some of which tested positive for hazardous levels of lead. A third person who worked at the store was sentenced to 30 months in prison.

The three defendants pleaded guilty in June 2010 to one count of conspiracy and one count of introducing and delivering a hazardous substance. The hazardous substance charge was lodged after lab tests showed some of the counterfeit jewelry seized contained nearly 20 times the amount of lead deemed safe by the Consumer Product Safety Commission for handling by children. Despite them containing hazardous lead levels, the items were labeled as “lead-free.”

The defendants included Il Keun Oh, also known as James Ken Oh, 58, of Hancock Park. Oh was the co-owner of Elegance Fashion Mart on East Olympic Boulevard. Oh’s wife, Jacqueline Oh, 56, also of Hancock Park, was the co-owner of Elegance Fashion Mart. Jacqueline Oh’s brother, Joon Yeop Kim, 48, of Koreatown, was a manager at Elegance Fashion Mart and was sentenced to 30 months.

The case stemmed from an investigation that began in 2007 when U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) received a tip that the jewelry store was selling counterfeit designer merchandise. During the course of the investigation, ICE HSI agents seized more than 25,000 counterfeit pieces of jewelry and accessories, including necklaces, rings, bracelets, watches, hair ornaments and cell phone charms. The investigation revealed that the counterfeit goods were manufactured in Qingdao, China. If the seized products had been genuine, they would have had an estimated retail value of more than $18 million.

“This sentence is a reminder about the high price retailers will pay if they bolster their bottom lines by selling counterfeit goods that put the public at risk,” said Claude Arnold, special agent in charge for ICE HSI in Los Angeles. “It should also make consumers think twice before buying fakes and knock-offs. You may save some money up front, but at what cost?”

Sales records recovered during an execution of a search warrant at the business in April 2008 indicated the defendants were also distributing counterfeit items to merchants in Texas, Florida, Georgia and Illinois.