University police issued a warning on Friday about men attempting to sell counterfeit Armani jackets in Westwood, according to a police report.
UCPD has received five reports since February about suspicious men driving around Westwood Village and the UCLA campus, asking students for directions to the Los Angeles International Airport, and offering to sell them the fake designer jackets at a reduced price, said Brian Washburn, a university police detective.
The men would tell the students that they were flying back to Italy or England and did not want to pay taxes on the jackets, Washburn added.
They sold the counterfeit jackets at around $400 each, Washburn said.
The most recent “theft by trickery” happened on Sept. 4. The person who purchased the jacket reported the license plate number to the police department, Washburn said. The license plate number belongs to a rental car, Washburn said, and the police are continuing to investigate the situation with this new information.
One of the two men was described in the police report as white, about 35 to 40 years old, with black hair and a thin mustache. The other man is described as white with brown hair, between 23 and 26 years old, and wearing red-rimmed sunglasses.
Washburn said the two men have dyed their hair in the past, as sometimes they are described as blonde.
Washburn said he recommends that students and other community members do not purchase items out of other people’s cars.
Anyone with additional information can contact UCPD at (310)-825-1491.
Compiled by Yael Levin, Bruin senior staff.