Experts: Westfield counterfeit sports memorabilia scheme could be 'biggest this industry has ever se

WESTFIELD, Ind. - Experts say the sports collectible industry is one built on trust and integrity, but a counterfeit scheme investigation out of Westfield threatens to shake it nationwide.




According to Westfield police, while officers served a search warrant in the investigation Wednesday, they found the man at the center of the investigation dead - whose alleged crime may have changed the sports world forever.




"It'll be the biggest counterfeit scheme this industry has seen. 100%," said Indy Card Exchange Owner Andy Albert.




That is - if the suspect's claims are posthumously found to be true.




The FBI is now helping Westfield police sort through 45-year-old Brett Lemieux's business practices after a property connected to him was raided Tuesday. A day later, Lemieux reportedly shot himself at the next property they searched.




While investigators are tight-lipped about it, Lemieux allegedly admitted to selling millions of fake autographs from athletes in a Facebook post police have yet to verify on record.




"Does it seem possible? No, in my opinion," Albert said. "But I know that he had a very active website. I know that he had been very involved in eBay for a long time. So if you look back on it and the history, yeah it's possible."




Albert said the claims came as a shock to collectors and sellers of sports memorabilia - some now wondering whether they spent thousands on jerseys with fake signatures and holograms that went undetected.




"That's the scary part - the fact that this company went to those depths of detail to fake the actual certificates and holograms," Albert said. "I just don't know because I didn't even know you could do it."




"It's not what you want to be seeing in this world as far as that goes," said sports memorabilia collector Michael Ray. "It's kind of angering really."




Former FBI agent and Veracity IIR CEO Doug Kouns said this case could be damaging to the industry as a whole, adding investigators have their work cut out for them in tracking the circulation of money, items and dealers who possibly resold counterfeited items unknowingly.




"The investigation is probably far from over," Kouns said. "It's probably still really just beginning because I can't imagine somebody like this was acting alone."




Meanwhile, experts recommend collectors take extra caution buying signed memorabilia, especially online.




"I'm going to be punching every certificate number in before I buy any memorabilia and stuff like that," said sports memorabilia collector Aaron Belenitsky.




And when in doubt, Albert said he and other trusted local stores can help connect buyers with authentication services.




"There will be questions for what everybody has on their walls for years to come," Albert said.





via: https://fox59.com/news/indycrime/experts-westfield-counterfeit-sports-memorabilia-scheme-could-be-biggest-this-industry-has-ever-seen/