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A married couple have received suspended sentences for selling Zippo lighters with licensed logos on.

James Humphreys and his wife Paula Ellis were both also ordered to carry out unpaid work by Caernarfon Crown Court on December 2.

The couple, from Pen-Y-Cae, Abergele each pleaded guilty to a charge of Fraudulent Trading under the Fraud Act 2006, following an investigation by Conwy Trading Standards.

Humphreys was given a suspended sentence of a year and 250 hours unpaid work.

His wife Ellis was handed a suspended sentence of 36 weeks in jail and 200 hours unpaid work.

The pair ran an online business selling, among other items, personalised Zippo lighters featuring famous brands and logos.

A complaint from another trader revealed many of the brands and logos were being used illegally.

Conwy Trading Standards brought the case after contacting those whose images had been used without licence (including Dr Who, Apple, Warner Bros, Chelsea FC) and with the support of Zippo.

Not only were the logos being used without a licence, but many of the ‘names’ used are prohibited from appearing on smoking paraphernalia.

Judge Dafydd Hughes, sitting at Caernarfon Crown Court, stated despite the business being aware of complaints from brand holders, the couple continued with the criminal activity which affected the public at large.

He said: “The general public are entitled to be protected from fraud and should be able to rely on genuine traders and articles.”

John Donnelly, Conwy’s Principal Trading Standards & Licensing Officer said: “Trading Standards is about creating a fair and equitable trading environment.

“We want to see a level playing field for all traders. Enforcing trading standards is about protecting the legitimate operators from the rogue operators who offer sub-standard, low quality goods. Legitimate operators pay significant sums to use these brands on their goods, they can’t compete with those who operate dishonestly with the intention of ripping off the public.

“The losses incurred by the legitimate industry are passed onto every consumer and damages the economy of Conwy.

“We will continue to take robust enforcement action to protect the public and eliminate rogue traders within Conwy.”