A former online sneaker retailer pleaded guilty to charges of trafficking in counterfeit goods and money laundering in federal court on Friday as part of a plea agreement.

James Pepion, the defendant, sold rare Nike shoes and similar merchandise through the website Get-Supplied.com and related businesses including Supplied, Inc. and SwagSupply, Inc., investigators with the Department of Justice said.

Pepion used online platforms such as Intagram, eBay and Shopify to resell the limited-edition sneakers. Although some of the shoes came from legitimate channels, investigators said he also imported counterfeit versions from black market sources in China and sold them authentic footwear.

Pepion wired over $174,000 to sellers in China, almost all for counterfeit shoes and packaging, investigators said. He combined the proceeds from the selling counterfeit shoes with sales of authentic ones, hiding the source of his illegal income.

The counterfeit footwear set off complaints to Nike as well as Pepion.

Pepion waived indictment by a federal grand jury and will forfeit almost $200,000 under the terms of his plea agreement. That sum includes $92,000 seized from financial accounts in April 2017, when federal agents executed a search warrant on his home and business.

The government is urging the court to impose a sentence of at least 18 months in federal prison. The maximum sentence for trafficking in counterfeit goods is 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $2 million. The maximum sentence for money laundering is 20 years in prison and a fine of $500,000.

- Annie Ma

@anniema15