Police: St. Charles man made, sold unlicensed NFL, NHL, baseball items

A St. Charles man was arrested this week on felony charges he was manufacturing and selling unlicensed NFL, NHL and MLB apparel in May, according to police and court records.

Joshua G. Latendresse, 44, of the 600 block of Persimmon Drive, is charged with three counts of manufacture of counterfeit items, a felony that carries a punishment ranging from probation to five years in prison if convicted.

St. Charles police Cmdr. Jerry Gatlin said the charges stem from an ongoing investigation by the Department of Homeland Security into trademark and copyright violations.

Gatlin said Latendresse is accused of making and selling items and apparel of the Bears, Blackhawks, Cubs, White Sox and Seattle Seahawks without permission or licenses from the National Football League, National Hockey League and Major League Baseball. Authorities seized some 350 items from Latendresse's St. Charles business, Next Level Threads.

"We worked in cooperation with Homeland Security. It was an investigation they were doing into trademark violations," Gatlin said. "He did not have the rights (to sell them). He was just sewing and embroidering them on his own."

Latendresse posted $500 of his $5,000 bail and is free while the charges are pending.

He is next due in court June 23.