Store owner could face deportation (Athens Banner-Herald)

Store owner could face deportation
By MERRITT MELANCON
Published Saturday, June 04, 2011

The man who owned Flashy-n-Classy, a downtown clothing store that Winder police raided last week, may face deportation in addition to more than 30 counts of attempting to sell counterfeit merchandise.

Abdoulaye Diallo, 36, lives in Winder but originally is from West Africa. He told investigators that the visa he obtained to work in the United States had expired, and he was in the country illegally, said Sgt. Rachel Love, who is investigating the case.

"Any felony charge is enough to get you deported," Love said. "And he's facing 32 felony counts from this one case."

Winder police started investigating Diallo's store, at 83 N. Broad St., after receiving complaints from customers who felt ripped off when they bought counterfeit merchandise.

Investigators went to the store and made several purchases of counterfeit purses and clothes that allowed officers to obtain a search warrant.

Officers raided the store May 24 and spent about two days taking inventory of the fake Polo, Prada, Fendi, Coach and Louis Vuitton sunglasses and handbags they seized, Love said.

Love still hasn't finished taking inventory of the store.

The merchandise seized bore price tags that totaled more than $10,000; that many real brand-name items would be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, she said.

Diallo was booked into the Barrow County Detention Center following his arrest, but has since been released on a $76,000 bond, according to the sheriff's office.

Winder police officers contacted U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and agents told them that Diallo will face deportation after the criminal charges are resolved, Love said.