Compiled by ZAKIAH KOYA, ALLISON LAI and R. ARAVINTHAN
IT resembled a tattoo studio on the outside but turned out to be a front to sell so-called luxury bags, watches and accessories, Harian Metro reported.
Apparently, the illegal traders operating there could earn up to about RM4,000 on weekdays and up to RM10,000 during weekends.
The “tattoo studio”, located in Kuala Lumpur, had a showroom displaying premium-grade counterfeit goods.
On Thursday, the Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry raided the shop and seized 2,700 counterfeit goods of various brands worth RM2.3mil.
Its Kuala Lumpur enforcement chief Mohd Shahran Mohd Arshad said the premises were used as “exclusive showrooms” for foreign customers seeking luxury items at lower prices.
“They thought they were getting cheap branded goods but in reality, the counterfeit products were being sold at many times their actual cost,” he said.
The handbags, watches and women’s accessories were sold at prices ranging from RM200 to RM5,000 each.
Mohd Shahran said the syndicate frequently moved its storage locations to avoid detection by authorities and to reduce losses if raided.
> Actor and comedian Saiful Apek, who spoke of being homeless once, is now busy spreading positivity on a social media microblogging site, Kosmo! reported.
“I used to be homeless, eat other people’s leftover food, got insulted, scolded and slandered. I’ve gone through all of that,” he shared.
Saiful Apek, whose real name is Muhammad Saiful Azam Mohamed Yusoff, hoped his story could inspire others to start taking “baby steps” to move forward.
“You have to remember that Apek did not become who he is in just one day,” he added.
He said he did not expect his short messages to have such a deep impact on netizens.
“Some even told me their relationship with their mothers used to be very distant, but after reading one sentence from me, they reconciled with their mothers.
“Sometimes it brings tears to my eyes to see how much impact it (his message) has,” said Apek, 57, who is also a member of the comedy group Senario.
The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a >, it denotes a separate news item.
