They said they would and they have done so. Attorneys for director Grenville Ricardo Delpeache have followed through on their promise to appeal Magistrate Graveney Bannister’s decision to convict the owner of Ouch Boutique of selling fake Puma gear in his store in May last year.
Satcha Kissoon and Romain Marshall, who filed their appeal this week, have asked the High Court to find that admissible evidence substantially affecting the merits of the case had been rejected by Magistrate Bannister and that inadmissible evidence had been allowed and there was not sufficient admissible evidence to sustain the decision of rejecting such inadmissible evidence.
In addition, the attorneys have submitted that the decision was against the weight of the evidence and that the decision is erroneous in law.
No date has yet been set for hearing of the matter.
It was on February 20, that Magistrate Bannister convicted the 44-year-old businessman, of Passage Gardens, Passage Road, St Michael, in the landmark case, which saw trademark specialist with Puma, Louis Comvalius, being flown in from Curacao to testify in the matter.
Delpeache was charged in connection with 17 pairs of slippers, seven single shoes (those placed on display) and 31 haversacks, which were found to be knock-offs of the Puma brand. The shoes included knock-offs the popular Puma’s Fenty by Rihanna line and her Creeper brand of shoes.
The court had heard that Customs documents showed that Delpeache had brought in the fake Puma backpacks, in bulk, at the declared cost of $9 each and then sold them at $110.
He also brought in the slippers, sneakers and shoes at US$2.33 and sold the slippers for BDS$110, the Creepers sneakers for BDS$450 and the Puma sneakers for BDS$200.
However, Delpeache had maintained that he did not know the shoes and backpacks were fake.
He said he only realised they were not the real deal when the Puma official “authenticated the stuff and pointed out the specifics in the items that is when I realised the goods were counterfeit”.
“It is very hard for me as a businessman to be conducting business, buying from reliable sources overseas and then to return to Barbados after paying duties and being fined for items that I paid duty on and that I bought from reliable and creditable businesses,” he had said.
The matter was prosecuted by Assistant Superintendent Trevor Blackman. (HLE)
