Sweet shop owner fined £400 for selling 30p Asda chocolate as £3 Wonka bars

Alexander Gwillym had tried to register his product as 'Mr Wonka Bar' rather than 'Wonka Bar'

A sweet shop owner has been fined after he sold 30p Asda Smart Price chocolate bars as "Wonka" bars worth £3.

A court heard that Alexander Gwillym, 39, of Llantarnam, Cwmbran, South Wales, repackaged the supermarket's discount bars before passing them off as the more expensive Nestle brand.

Magistrates in Newport were also told that the products did not meet a number of key consumer protection food labelling laws.

Ahead of his prosecution, Gwillym had made an unsuccessful attempt to register his own "Mr Wonka Bar" trademark.

However, he was warned that his application was "too similar" to the existing Wonka trademarks - and would therefore be likely to mislead the public, the court heard.

Torfaen Council's trading standards team said it had warned Gwillym last year not to sell the counterfeit items at his Sweet66 Ltd shop, but he continued to do so.

At Newport Magistrates' Court, Sweet66 Ltd pleaded guilty to eight offences of breaching trademark legislation and misleading consumers.

The confectionery shop, based in Cwmbran Shopping Centre, was fined £400 and asked to pay £1,000 towards the prosecution costs.

Gwillym, the owner and director of Sweet66 Ltd, was fined £480.

The local authority's executive member for public protection, Gwyneira Clark, said consumers expected to buy goods which were correctly labelled.

"The work of Torfaen's public protection service is vital to safeguard the health and economic well-being of the public and this prosecution sends out a message to all retailers that selling counterfeit goods will not be tolerated."

PA