A Romford company director has been sentenced for attempting to sell unsafe and counterfeit electric goods with a retail value of £54,000.

Last month, Rizwan Nasir, director of online business Buyersbargin LTD, was given a three-month sentence for failing to comply with the requirements of safety regulations at Snaresbrook Crown Court.

The 52 years old’s sentence was suspended for 18 months.

His prosecution follows an investigation aided by Havering Council’s Trading Standards team in partnership with National Trading Standards officers and the Metropolitan Police.

The investigation found a large quantity of items, with a retail value of £54,000, were falsely branded as goods made by names such as Apple, Samsung, Beats and Sennheiser.

These items were found to be counterfeit or contravening UK safety regulations.

Nasir’s company was also found guilty of six offences of failing to comply with the requirements of safety regulations, plus three counts of unauthorised trademark.

The judge issued a forfeiture order against the online business, which had been selling electrical chargers, adaptors, plugs, cables and earphones.

It comes after warrants were issued in March, 2018, and resulted in a large number of goods being seized from a Romford address.

The items were checked for authenticity and safety, with 23 items labelled as Apple and Beats, and 17 branded with the name Sennheiser, being found to be counterfeit.

A further 16 electrical goods failed safety tests and would have been a risk to the public.

Councillor Ray Morgan said: “This is a great result for our trading standards team whose priority is to keep residents and visitors to Havering safe.

“The goods found in this case posed a potential safety risk but our action meant that they never reached the shelves to cause danger.”

He added that the outcome of the investigation is a “good example” of the council’s partnership with the National Trading Standards and the police.

Chair of the National Trading Standards tri regional investigation team, Trish Burls, said: “This investigation highlights the value and success of partnership working between a local authority and our national and regional trading standards teams.

“Our teams were able to provide considerable and valuable investigational and evidence support to Havering’s trading standards officers, helping to pull together the various strands of this complex investigation.

“This allowed the full facts of the offences to be presented and considered in court, sending a clear message that fraudulent activities will not be tolerated.”