*The matter was before Kilrush District Court. 

A 63 year old West Clare woman convicted for selling counterfeit Louis Vuitton, Prada, Gucci, Alexander McQueen and Victoria Secrets designer goods for knock-down prices has escaped jail.

This follows Judge Alec Gabbett imposing a suspended three-month prison term on Eileen Bracken of Woodfield Drive, Kilrush after she pleaded guilty to eleven separate counts of selling or offering for sale counterfeit designer goods from her home on dates between October 31st to December 12th 2022.

The offences are contrary to the Trade Marks Act 1996 and some of the counterfeit labels that Ms Bracken pleaded guilty to selling or offering for sale include Louis Vuitton, Prada, Northface, Gucci, Tommy Hilfiger, Victoria Secrets, Adidas, Alexander McQueen and Chanel.

At Kilrush District Court, Judge Gabbett said that he would impose the suspended prison term on one count on account of Ms Bracken having no previous convictions and a Probation Report concluding that she was at a very low risk of re-offending and hasn’t come to Garda attention since the matter first came to Garda notice two years ago.

Judge Gabbett said that he would be taking the remaining counts into consideration.

When the case first came before the court, Judge Gabbett commented that the “the game is up” for Ms Bracken selling the counterfeit items at knockdown prices.

Judge Gabbett said that the three-month suspended prison term for 24 months was in place as a deterrent against this type of future offending.

Judge Gabbett said, “If her entrepreneurial streak starts to come out again the suspended sentence will put a stop to that”.

He said, “Whether people like or not, the trademark system is very important and protects people’s rights and the owner of the trademarks are entitled to their rights and use of their logos and the offences are clearly in breach of all of that”.

Solicitor for Ms Bracken, Patrick Moylan said that a fine would be difficult for his client given her financial circumstances and Judge Gabbett did not impose any fine.

Sgt Frank O’Grady previously told the court that Gardaí under warrant seized a large amount of counterfeit designer items at Ms Bracken’s home in Kilrush.

Sgt O’Grady stated that Gardaí later confirmed that Ms Bracken had no authorisation from the individual designer brands to sell the goods.

Sgt O’Grady told the court that the estimated cost of the designer items from the eleven brands was €23,170 and Eileen Bracken was selling them for €1,455 resulting in an estimated loss of €21,715 to the companies.

He said that Gardaí received statements from the different trademark companies confirming that the items Ms Bracken was selling and that she was advertising to sell were counterfeit items and she was not authorised to sell or advertise the trademark designer items.

Mr Moylan said that Ms Bracken had purchased the goods from Turkey to sell to local people.

He said that Ms Bracken’s family came under financial pressure at the time and “she thought this might be some new way to earn some money”.

He said that Ms Bracken has worked previously but is now on disability where she is dealing with a medical condition.

Judge Gabbett said, “The victims here are the large multinational corporations and if they don’t protect their rights and entitlements under those intellectual property laws, they lose that”.

Mr Moylan said, “The guilty plea is hugely valuable in the case because if I was to put the State through their paces, we could be here a week with witnesses coming in from far and wide from the companies concerned”.

Mr Moylan said that Ms Bracken hasn’t engaged in any selling since Gardaí seized the goods.

Related News

shannon airport giveaway 2
Shannon Airport giving away 80 flights during month of September
bunratty sheaf 2
Sheaf throwing competition part of the Traditional Harvest Day offering in Bunratty
clarinbridge tidy towns 1
Clarinbridge & Marconi Men's Shed in Clifden represent Galway in Pride of Place awards
john quinlivan thady's hill 1-2
Shannon Airport Group's Thady's Hill project shortlisted for environmental award
Latest News
kilmihil v ennistymon 01-08-25 joey rouine 1
'We won't be afraid of anyone' - excitement building in Ennistymon for Clare SFC quarter-finals
shannon gaels v coolmeen 16-08-25 aidan corry 2
Coolmeen claim last Clare IFC quarter-final spot with dramatic finish
bunratty sheaf 2
Sheaf throwing competition part of the Traditional Harvest Day offering in Bunratty
clarinbridge tidy towns 1
Clarinbridge & Marconi Men's Shed in Clifden represent Galway in Pride of Place awards
cratloe v st josephs doora barefield 16-08-25 diarmuid ryan eoghan thynne tom mcdonald 1
'Hard-fought wins' for Cratloe has paved way to quarter-finals
Premium
tulla v killanena 31-08-25 fionn ryan mark flaherty ryan hayes 1
Clare PIHC: Tulla draw knocks out Killanena, Tubber thump Parteen/Meelick & Magpies fall to another shock defeat
st breckans 1
St Breckans put emphasis on earning four-week break to get structure right for knockout football
clonlara v crusheen 23-08-25 oisin o'brien breffni horner 1
'We left it behind us against The Bridge' - Crusheen reflect on latest championship crusade
naomh eoin v liscannor 03-08-25 darren nagle 1
Liscannor extend life in intermediate ranks & send Ennistymon into relegation decider
gerardine joe quinlivan 1
Springfield residents can sleep soundly as flooding nightmare ends

Advertisement

Subscribe for just €3 per month

If you’re here, you care about County Clare. So do we. Did you rely on us for Covid-19 updates, follow our election coverage, or visit The Clare Echo every week for breaking news and sport? The Clare Echo invests in local journalism and we want to safeguard its future in our county. By becoming a subscriber you are supporting what we do, will receive access to all our premium articles and a better experience, while helping us improve our offering to you. Subscribe to clareecho.ie and get the first six months for just €3 a month (less than 75c per week), and thereafter €8 per month. Cancel anytime, limited time offer. T&Cs Apply. www.clareecho.ie.