Happy Valley Man Sentenced for Illegally Trafficking Counterfeit Gun Parts

A man from Happy Valley was sentenced to federal probation and ordered to pay more than a quarter of a million dollars in restitution on Tuesday for illegally trafficking gun accessories, according to the District of Oregon U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Twenty-five-year-old Johnny Li received five years of probation, which included 180 days of home detention. His restitution payment totaled $281,628.

According to court documents, Li’s trafficking operation began in 2019 with counterfeit parts he purchased from China — often through Alibaba.com, one of the world’s largest online commerce companies.

The accessories included suppressors, scopes, grips, and sights, which he resold as airsoft gun accessories on his own site.

Customs and Border Protection seized 35 counterfeit laser sights, labeled as “toy telescopes,” that were sent from China to Li’s home in Happy Valley in December 2019. Several months later, in May 2020, CBP seized additional rifle sights en route to Li

A search warrant used by federal agents in October 2020 revealed more than $280,000 worth of counterfeit gun parts in Li’s home, and in November 2021, a Portland grand jury indicted Li on a charge of trafficking in counterfeit goods. Li pleaded guilty to the single charge.

Li’s case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Portland Police Bureau and the Oregon Intellectual Property Task Force. It was prosecuted by Quinn Harrington and Katherine Rykken, assistant U.S. attorneys for the District of Oregon.

Anyone with information about counterfeiting or intellectual property rights violations are encouraged to submit a tip to the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center by visiting iprcenter.gov/report.

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