California Man Pleads Guilty to $250K Fake Memorabilia Scheme

Anthony J. Tremayne, a 58-year-old man formerly from West Covina, California, pleaded guilty to mail fraud for selling fake sports and celebrity memorabilia worth between $250,000 and $550,000 over nearly a decade. His fraudulent activities, which occurred from 2010 to December 2019, involved selling items purported to have genuine signatures from famous personalities, often accompanied by bogus Certificates of Authenticity. The scheme was uncovered when Tremayne sold a forged photograph from 'Keeping Up with the Kardashians' to an undercover FBI agent for $200. Among the counterfeit items were memorabilia falsely attributed to sports teams like the Los Angeles Lakers and Chicago Bulls, as well as music and movie stars. Tremayne faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, with sentencing set for August 11. He is currently residing in Mexico and was originally charged with multiple counts before reaching a plea agreement for one count of mail fraud.