Mustafa Abdul Aljaff, 32, has finally been sentenced after creating and selling counterfeit electronic components to our military and many commercial and medical companies as well. His company, MVP Micro, had many aka’s used to deceive their customers and suppliers. He has been sentenced to 30 months, a fine for restitution to the manufacturers of the products of $178,000, he will be on supervised release for three years following his term, and perform 250 hours of community service. This has been a long time in the making and it seems like a step in the right direction towards stopping the proliferation of counterfeits being sold into the market. Click here to see more on the topic.
The recently enacted National Defense Authorization Act of 2012 has made the accidental use of counterfeit electronic components in government equipment a much more serious offense. The law increased the fines up to $2 million for individuals and $5 million for companies, increased prison terms up to 10 years for first time offenses, government contractors risk debarment, and the financial burden to correct any counterfeit issue will lie with the contractor, not the taxpayer. There are many new provisions which elaborate on increased supplier scrutiny, product traceability, and authenticity testing. Government contractors and their subcontractors are all panicking. AERI has received multiple inquiries about how we can help with their purchasing of obsolete components and verify the authenticity of their parts currently on their shelves. See this link for a very concise description of the new NDAA 2012 law.
