Adel business owners, former CMS principal indicted in federal counterfeit goods case
Last week, a federal grand jury indicted an Adel business owner, two of her daughters, the business owner’s husband, and three other defendants for conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit goods, according to court records.
The defendants are identified as Michelle Meadows, owner of Michelle’s in Adel; Russell B. “Rusty” Meadows, former principal of Cook Middle School; Mrs. Meadows’ two daughters, Heather Danielle “Dani” Edmondson and Ashlin Meadows; James R. Shivers Jr.; Blake Woodruff; and Haiden Hall Childree.
(Please note the full true bill at end of this article.)
The indictment states:
From about March 2020 until at least December 2023, the defendants and their co-conspirators conspired to traffic in goods with counterfeit marks, “to cause confusion, mistake, and deception.”
“It was the object of the conspiracy that Defendants and their co-conspirators unjustly enriched themselves by fraudulently selling handbags, sunglasses, wallets, and other goods bearing counterfeit marks without the knowledge and authorization of the companies that (1) had spent substantial amounts of money in developing the quality of goods which bore the legitimate marks and (2) had lawfully registered such marks … in the Principal Register of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.”
The companies defrauded were Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Gucci, YSL, Supreme, Hermes, UGG, Tory Burch, Coach, Burberry, Rolex, Marc Jacobs, Goyard, Christian Louboutin, Versace, Kate Spade, Tiffany, Ray-Ban, Christian Dior, Cartier, Lulu Lemon, Michael Kors, Prada, Givenchy, Balenciaga, Golden Goose, and Fendi.
The indictment further states that during the course of the conspiracy, Michelle Meadows and Danielle Edmondson utilized PayPal accounts to receive funds from the sale and to purchase counterfeit goods. They also allegedly utilized Venmo for business transactions.
The indictment adds, “In an attempt to distract others from the counterfeit character of the items they offered, the defendants referred to the items as ‘replicas’ or ‘inspired’ items.”
From at least March 2020, and continuing until December 2023, Mrs. Meadows and her co-conspirators began to purchase and sell numerous counterfeit brands online through three private Facebook Groups: Michelle’s Private Group (which had approximately 23,000 followers); Suzi’s Pretty Things; and Danielle’s Private Group.
“Prior to March 23, 2023, Defendants amassed an inventory of more than 300 counterfeit goods bearing the trademark emblems of at least 10 of the victims, with a total value of approximately $954,470. These items were intended by the Defendants to be sold through Michelle’s online private Facebook Group.
“From on or about January 2023 to Dec. 14, 2023, Defendant Edmondson aided and abetted by Defendants James Shivers, Michelle Meadows, and Russell Meadows, amassed an inventory of approximately 2,000 counterfeit goods bearing the trademark emblems of at least 20 of the victims, with a total value of approximately $10,036,093, with the intention of selling these counterfeit goods through Suzi’s Pretty Things and Danielle’s Private Group, which are online private Facebook Groups.”
The indictment lists overt acts, including the invoicing of customers for counterfeit items, use of texts and Facebook in response to customer requests, modeling of counterfeit earrings on a live Facebook show, editing of photographs of counterfeit items appearing on Facebook, packing of counterfeit merchandise for shipment, conducting live Facebook shows to advertise and sell counterfeit items, sending an order via Facebook to a supplier in China for numerous counterfeit items, and modeling counterfeit sunglasses on Suzy’s Pretty Things.
Michelle Meadows and Dani Edmondson were also indicted for tampering. They allegedly burned counterfeit items including purses and other products with the intent to destroy evidence for criminal proceedings.
The indictment also provides a forfeiture notice for any article and any property used for the alleged offenses. The forfeiture will be for all funds involved in an amount to be determined.
The FBI brought the case. Federal officers arrested Michelle Meadows, Rusty Meadows, and Ashlin Meadows for the indicted counts on Friday, Nov. 21. They have pleaded not guilty to the indictment in federal court. They have been released from custody on personal recognizance bonds with court pending. Bond conditions include surrender any passport to the U.S. Probation Office, restricted to the state of Georgia, and no contact with codefendants unless immediate family members.
The indictment and related materials, a public record, was filed with the U.S. District Court, Middle District of Georgia, Valdosta Division, on Nov. 18, 2025. U.S. Attorney William R. Keyes and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sonja B. Profit are prosecuting the case.
A FBI spokesman said the agency cannot further discuss the case. The Adel News will have more coverage.
