A court in Lilongwe fined Harriet Banda and Jeremiah Mona K1.8 million each for selling fake Malawi soccer team jerseys. The court ordered that K1 million from each fine go straight to the Football Association of Malawi as payment for their losses. These two people broke the law by selling products with fake trademarks, which violates section 52 of the Trademarks Act from 2018. Police caught Harriet with 84 knockoff Moto-branded jerseys and nabbed Jeremiah carrying 62 phony shirts.
Police prosecutor Sub Inspector Kabazale pushed for tough penalties despite these folks never breaking the law before. He argued their actions hurt FAM financially and said the punishment should warn others thinking about similar crimes. Kabazale explained that fake products usually sneak into the country without proper checks, which means the government misses out on tax money that could help national teams. Both defendants asked the judge to go easy on them since they had clean records until then. The law allows fines of up to K5 million and jail time of 10 years with hard labor for this offense.
Second Grade Magistrate Austin Banda decided on the K1,800,000 fine as compensation to the Football Association. FAM Marketing and Broadcasting Manager Tulipo Mwenelupembe attended the court hearing and spoke afterward about the case. He mentioned the organization plans to keep working closely with police and other government groups to fight against these illegal sales. Mwenelupembe expressed satisfaction with the court decision, noting this marked the first time sellers of counterfeit jerseys faced arrest and prosecution for their actions.
The FAM manager highlighted how important merchandise sales are to their budget. Money from official jersey sales helps fund various activities for Malawi national soccer teams. This case represents part of broader efforts to protect official merchandise and ensure profits benefit Malawian football instead of counterfeiters. Mwenelupembe thanked the Malawi Police Service for their excellent work tracking down and prosecuting these illegal sellers. The prosecution hopes these fines will discourage others from selling fake sports merchandise throughout the country.
Police prosecutor Sub Inspector Kabazale pushed for tough penalties despite these folks never breaking the law before. He argued their actions hurt FAM financially and said the punishment should warn others thinking about similar crimes. Kabazale explained that fake products usually sneak into the country without proper checks, which means the government misses out on tax money that could help national teams. Both defendants asked the judge to go easy on them since they had clean records until then. The law allows fines of up to K5 million and jail time of 10 years with hard labor for this offense.
Second Grade Magistrate Austin Banda decided on the K1,800,000 fine as compensation to the Football Association. FAM Marketing and Broadcasting Manager Tulipo Mwenelupembe attended the court hearing and spoke afterward about the case. He mentioned the organization plans to keep working closely with police and other government groups to fight against these illegal sales. Mwenelupembe expressed satisfaction with the court decision, noting this marked the first time sellers of counterfeit jerseys faced arrest and prosecution for their actions.
The FAM manager highlighted how important merchandise sales are to their budget. Money from official jersey sales helps fund various activities for Malawi national soccer teams. This case represents part of broader efforts to protect official merchandise and ensure profits benefit Malawian football instead of counterfeiters. Mwenelupembe thanked the Malawi Police Service for their excellent work tracking down and prosecuting these illegal sellers. The prosecution hopes these fines will discourage others from selling fake sports merchandise throughout the country.
