Omi In A Hellcat’s legal dramas continue. The famous YouTuber lost a trademark infringement lawsuit against Nike and was ordered to pay the brand $8 million.
According to the New York court documents, Nike, Inc. filed a complaint in November 2022 against defendants Omi, real name Bill Omar Carrasquillo, and his company Reloaded Merch LLC, alleging claims of unauthorized use of Nike’s Air Jordan 1 High, the Nike Air Jordan Low OG, the Nike Dunk Low, and the Nike Air Jordan/Dunk Outsole design.
Omi’s lawyer withdrew from the case in February due to unpaid balances. In March, Omi’s counsel withdrew, leading to a default judgment. The court also ruled that the designer is banned from producing or selling shoes resembling Air Jordan 1 and Nike Dunk.
New York Judge Victor Marrero ordered Reloaded Merch LLC and Bill Omar Carrasquillo (the “Reloaded Defendants”) to pay Nike Inc. $8 million as of Friday, April 19.
Omi In A Hellcat hails from Swedesboro, New Jersey. In 2016, he created a YouTube channel to showcase his jewelry, clothes, and cars. In December 2023, the channel had 819,000 subscribers and 65 million views. In 2016, he started a business with friends, offering subscribers content from Comcast, Verizon FiOS, DirectTV, and HBO for as low as $15/month.
According to the documents, in 2019, the service had 100,000 subscribers and generated $34 million in revenue. Omi removed copyright protections from cable subscriptions using encoders from China and streamed the content online.
Carrasquillo and his associates were accused of illegally selling copyrighted material to subscribers and using the profits to buy expensive toys and jewelry. The illegal activity reportedly took place from 2016 to 2019.
The YouTuber had several legal issues, including auctioning 36 vehicles and a 5-year prison sentence for fraud. In March 2023, he was sentenced to a 62-count federal indictment, a $30 million forfeiture money judgment, and a $15 million restitution order for copyright infringement, tax evasion, and fraud.