A man has been sentenced to prison after making millions from fake records in the largest seizure of counterfeit vinyl in UK history.
A 40-year-old man has been sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison after making £2.7 million ($3.6 million) from fake records in the largest seizure of counterfeit vinyl in the UK. Rehan Ahmed of West London was found guilty at Inner London Crown Court and was sentenced on September 18.
Led by the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) at the City of London Police, the operation disrupted a criminal enterprise that had distributed thousands of counterfeit records across the country.
The records were being produced and distributed under the name “Phoenix of Vinyl.” Record labels that examined the seized items confirmed that all titles infringed their copyright, with 108 artists’ rights infringed in total.
The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) referred the case to PIPCU, which led to the investigation that uncovered a “fully operational underground vinyl manufacturing plant operating at an industrial scale.”
Warrants secured in February 2024 resulted in the seizure of over 2,500 vinyl records, as well as lacquer, stampers, and other tools used in their manufacture. In total, officers found four vinyl presses (approximately 70 years old), 3,000 metal stampers, and thousands of sleeves and labels. Authorities suspect that the operation has been running secretly since 2017.
“Rehan Ahmed exploited artists and the wider music industry, taking advantage of the resurgence in vinyl records for his own gain. We will continue to pursue criminals who target the creative industries and bring them to justice when they do,” said Detective Constable Daryl Fryatt, from the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) at the City of London Police. “This case should send a clear message to anyone selling counterfeit vinyl: it is illegal and we will take action.”
“This conviction is hugely significant, and we thank our partners in this investigation, PIPCU and our label members, for their valued efforts over many months to bring about this welcome outcome. Sadly, it won’t return the tens of millions of pounds that we estimate have been leeched from artists, the record labels that support them, and the retail community that sells their music, but at least this major criminal operation has now been closed down, and it sends a clear signal to other counterfeiters who are exploiting music that we are coming after them, concluded Peter Ratcliffe, BPI Director of Content Protection.
“With music on physical formats enjoying a resurgence, the market in counterfeit records has unfortunately also been growing as criminals cash in at the expense of creators and fans. This doesn’t just impact the legal music economy and everyone that works and invests in it—it also affects every one of us as citizens who fall victim to other forms of criminality that it funds. It is vital that we put a stop to it, and working with our members, PIPCU, trading standards, and other authorities, we are absolutely focused on doing just that.”
