Epson sends zero tolerance message

The two shops, Mital and Gami’s, were raided in a swift and well co-ordinated police action. The dealer was arrested along with an employee and charged with counterfeiting and violating intellectual property rights and subsequently remanded to judicial custody.

Six thousand refilled cartridges were seized and the refilling unit was shuttered. A massive illegal racket which was catering to large parts of the West and the Central India was terminated. In an effort to send a strong message of zero tolerance towards the sale of fake cartridges, the police in different parts of the country have stepped up their co-operation and efforts to arrest and terminate such practices.

Earlier in October 2012, police in Chennai raided the premises of a well established IT dealer, Sanguine IT Solutions in Chennai for selling fake Epson cartridges. The company was caught with 235 fake T5852 cartridges which are used in Epson’s PictureMate series of printers. The police acted with a sense of urgency once the complaint was filed going ahead with the raid.

A spokesperson at Seiko Epson Corporation said, ‘We applaud the efforts of the Indian police to curb this menace and will whole heartedly assist and support the law enforcement authorities in all such crackdowns.’ He went on to say, ‘Epson takes great care to observe the law and regulations, and to maintain high standards of corporate ethics while at the same time expecting others to show appropriate respect for its rights. We will continue vigorous enforcement of our intellectual property rights to protect our innovative products against those who use Epson's patented technology, trademarks, and other intellectual property without permission.’