Sir Roger Moore praises capture of rogue autograph trader

Sir Roger Moore has praised trading standards officials who caught a rogue autograph trader, according to Ananova.

The 007 actor was among many British actors, including Kate Winslet and Emma Thompson, whose autograph on a photo was faked and sold by 47-year-old Larry Bore.

Bore, of Bury, Lancashire, was given a two-year suspended sentence at Coventry Crown Court after pleading guilty at an earlier hearing to 14 offences under the Trade Descriptions Act. He was also ordered to pay £10,000 costs within the next 12 months.

Some of the signed photos included a "certificate of authenticity" sticker falsely stating they were genuine articles, the court heard.

Trading standards officers from Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council swooped on the stallholder as he traded his counterfeit products at the Memorabilia Show at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham.

They had received a tip-off from two friends who had spent more than £700 on signed photos, including ones of Winslet and Alan Rickman, from his stall in 1998.

Independent experts and the celebrities themselves verified the autographs - which included one of Helena Bonham Carter - as fake before Bore, of Walshaw, who trades as the Bury-based Hollywood Store, was charged.

In a statement issued after the sentencing, Sir Roger said: "It seems autograph forgeries are growing more rapidly than ever. It is a deplorable practice and one that leaves the real fans losing out. I`m grateful and pleased that Solihull Council is so vigorous in pursuing such perpetrators."


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