Japan, Third Arrest over Sale of Fake Oakley Sunglasses

A Hyogo Prefecture woman who allegedly conspired with a couple to sell fake Oakley sunglasses on an Internet auction site was arrested Tuesday. The three allegedly passed off cheap imported sunglasses as those made by upscale sunglasses maker Oakley Inc. of the United States.

Many well-known Japanese athletes wear Oakley sunglasses, including Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners and soccer star Hidetoshi Nakata.

Aichi Prefectural Police arrested Megumi Kuwata, 32, an unemployed woman from Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture, on suspicion of violating the trademark law. Police seized some 3,000 pairs of fake Oakley-brand sunglasses when they searched her house. The couple, Kenzo Takenaka and his wife, Yukako, both 40, were arrested last week.

Police allege that the trio posted an ad on the auction site in September, claiming they were offering the same type of Oakley sunglasses worn by Suzuki. They reportedly sold three pairs of such sunglasses for about 13,000 yen each. The model worn regularly by Ichiro is usually sold for 40,000 yen to 50,000 yen, according to a Japanese firm representing the American sunglasses maker Oakley Inc.

Takenaka's bank account records showed about 2,900 deposits from across the country between March and October, amounting to about 15 million yen, police said. They suspect the three have earned at least 10 million yen from selling fake-brand sunglasses.