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A man who falsely sold Chinese-made body armor as U.S.-certified and domestically produced equipment to American law enforcement has been sentenced to over five years in prison and ordered to pay $5.2 million in restitution, closing a case that exposed a deceptive scheme with national security implications.

Vall Iliev, 70, owner of ShotStop Ballistics LLC in Stow, Ohio, pleaded guilty in March to conspiracy to smuggle goods, counterfeit trafficking, and fraud. On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Donald C. Nugent sentenced him to five years and three months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

Armor Smuggling Uncovered at Border

The operation unraveled in May 2023, when U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents intercepted a Canada-registered truck entering at Blaine, Washington. Inside, they discovered over 200 body armor plates from China, tucked away inside a massive shipping container linked to Iliev's business and residence addresses.

According to a Justice Department statement, Iliev then processed the armor at his warehouse and sold it via his ShotStop website, falsely marketing the products as American-made and NIJ-certified — the gold standard for ballistic armor used by police departments across the country.

Fake Labels, Real Danger

What made the fraud especially dangerous was the false certification. The armor was marked with the seal of the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) — the DOJ’s research and standards arm for police gear — despite none of the Chinese products qualifying under U.S. testing or manufacturing requirements.

“Federal inspectors confirmed that NIJ and ‘Made in USA’ labels were applied after the products arrived from China,” the DOJ stated.

NIJ-approved body armor must be manufactured domestically. This deception not only defrauded buyers but put law enforcement officers at potential risk, prosecutors emphasized.

Legal Teams and Fallout

The government was represented by Duncan T. Brown of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio. Iliev is represented by John Mitchell and Mire Aftim of Taft Stettinius & Hollister. Requests for comment from Iliev’s legal team were not immediately returned.

The case underscores a broader concern about counterfeit safety gear and the growing risk of fraudulent claims in national supply chains, especially in high-stakes industries like law enforcement and defense.