Seaside Boardwalk Shop Owner Charged in Counterfeit Goods Probe

The owner and two clerks of In The Cut on the Seaside Heights boardwalk are accused of selling counterfeit designer-brand items in an investigation by the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs.

State investigators seized suspected bogus merchandise valued at about $10,782.27 at the shop, including 154 timepieces, in the "Safe Summer 2014" initiative,according to information from the office of acting New Jersey Attorney General John J. Hoffman.

Seaside Heights police and partnering agencies assisted in the confiscation of items fetching $49.99 to $209.99, bearing brands including Michael Kors, Gucci, Rolex, Casio G-Shock, and Burberry, along with allegedly fake Snoop Dogg G-Pens going for $129.99 each.

Owner Georgios K.Kokotis was charged Tuesday, September 2 on a fourth-degree count of distributing counterfeit goods.

Four days earlier, store manager Ahamad Elkady of Brooklyn was booked for the same count and clerk Kwabenah. A. Ayeh of Colts Neck, New York, was given a disorderly persons charge for allegedly selling tobacco to a minor.

Earlier in the summer in Atlantic City, the consumer-protection drive also resulted in drug and weapons charges, labeling violation charges and product seizures at 10 Boardwalk businesses.