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On Oct. 2, the sneaker internet erupted upon word that Los Angeles-based consignment store Cool Kicks was raided by the Los Angeles Police Department.
Alleged photos of seized sneakers and staff arrests went viral as news of the raid surfaced during a Cool Kicks auction livestream.
In the days since, new details have emerged in the form of the LAPD recovering $500,000 worth of inventory and the release of an official statement from Cool Kicks.
Why was there a raid, commotion, and damaging discourse in the first place? Here’s everything you need to know about the Cool Kicks arrest.
Cool Kicks is a Los Angeles consignment brand focusing on hyped sneakers, streetwear, and experience.
Founded in Virginia by Adeel Shams in 2014, Cool Kicks relocated to California in 2016, opening up the now famous location on Melrose Ave. known as Cool Kicks LA, as well as Cool Kicks Farmers Market on W. 3rd Street.
At one point, Cool Kicks also had a space at The Forum Shops at Caesars in Las Vegas.
In recent years, Cool Kicks has become a lifestyle brand with a massive following due in part to their strong use of social media–1.3 million Instagram followers—as well as their celebrity-driven YouTube content.
Cool Kicks has combined elements made famous by Flight Club, Round Two, and even Complex’s Sneaker Shopping to create a modern footwear meets streetwear meets online fame hub strategically targeted towards Gen Z and Gen Alpha.
Hype staples like Travis Scott x Air Jordan 1 Lows stay stocked at Cool Kicks while rare Nike Kobe samples and autographed Adidas Yeezys have been known to pop up in store. Apparel offerings from Chrome Hearts occupy showroom space as does merch made by Cool Kicks itself. Wall-to-wall shelves of unworn Air Jordan 1s mirror mall resale stores, elevated by the backdrop of one of Los Angeles’ most frequented shopping districts and art adorned decor.
The viral appeal extends to other forms of celebrity shoppers ranging from online influencers to OnlyFans creators. Whether Central Cee or Sophie Rain, the shopping exploits have been captured and optimized as a marketing tool.
On YouTube alone, Cool Kicks claims 1.95 million subscribers with a Lil Uzi Vert video amassing 5.6 million views. Simply put, Cool Kicks is one of the largest resale shops in the world from a visibility standpoint.
On Oct. 2, 2025, Cool Kicks LA was raided by the LAPD. At the time of the incident, it was reported that the raid was led by the LAPD’s Bunco/Forgery agency.
The raid took place while Cool Kicks founder and shop owner Adeel Shams was on livestream for a WhatNot auction. Initially, Shams thought he was the target of a ‘swatting’ prank.
The raid resulted in Shams being arrested by LAPD alongside additional members of the store’s staff. Alleged photos from the scene of the raid show palettes of red Nike boxes and what look like “Cave Stone” Air Jordan 4 boxes outside in a parking lot. Dozens of boxes appear in the photos.
Livestream commotion and arrests aside, the core issue in the incident is the booking record tying the raid to the Bunco/Forgery agency. This division of the LAPD specializes in cases linked to fraud, counterfeit goods, and similar offenses.
The raid event and corresponding arrests have called into question the authenticity of products sold at Cool Kicks.
Hours after the Oct. 2 arrest, Complex reported that Adeel Shams had been released by LAPD.
Booking records at the time stated that a court date for the Cool Kicks case has been set for Oct. 23 at the LA Superior Court.
On Oct. 4, Cool Kicks employee and content creator Rami Almordaah released a video on YouTube stating that the raid was not at the Melrose Ave. brick-and-mortar but rather the Cool Kicks warehouse.
Almordaah, an employee at Cool Kicks for over nine years, stated that though he couldn’t speak in depth about the situation, the raid itself had nothing to do with counterfeit items.
On Oct. 6, the LAPD released a statement corroborating the alleged photos while revealing major details.
In total, $500,000 worth of inventory were recovered in the raid—notably pairs of “Cave Stone” Air Jordan 4s and Nike Air Max 95s—to the tune of 2,100 pairs of sneakers and 150 boxes of Nike apparel.
The key findings in the Oct. 6 statement from the LAPD is that the items were reported to be stolen as opposed to counterfeit.
The news release gives credit to the LAPD’s Commercial Crimes Division and Cargo Theft unit, notably not mentioning the Bunco/Forgery agency tied to fake products.
Instead, the release states the reason for the warrant and key issue at hand being “large-scale cargo threat,” citing collaborative help from local railroad, airport, and port police.
In turn, Shams was booked on felony charges for receiving stolen property.
Friend of Cool Kicks and YouTube personality Qias Omar stood up for Shams and the team on an Oct. 7 upload, stamping the sentiment that the raid was sparked by widespread problems with cargo theft deriving from train robberies and that the issue with Cool Kicks was never about fakes.
“Intentionally buying counterfeit goods to sell them? Cool Kicks does not do that,” Omar said. “I can guarantee that. That rumor has been basically shut down.”
In the time since the incident, Cool Kicks has remained active on social media. Numerous Instagram posts have been made, ranging from an official statement regarding the raid to Supreme Playboi Carti tees listed for $30 a piece.
New arrival products, in-store shopping photos, and viral challenge videos all at the shop have appeared on the Cool Kicks Instagram feed in recent days.
On Oct. 4, Cool Kicks issued a statement regarding the raid on their Instagram feed, embedded below.
The statement claims that the Nike sneakers seized by LAPD were a “small allotment” that were purchased and received by the store within 48 hours of the raid. It was alleged that said sneakers were stolen which came as a “complete shock” to the entire Cool Kicks team.
It is worth noting that consignment shops of all trades can find themselves in hot water with law enforcement when accused of receiving stolen items. It is also worth noting that the LAPD’s statement on Oct. 6 tied the raid directly to investigations of cargo theft rather than that of fraudulent products.
In some ways, this news is somewhat absolvent to the public perception issue for Cool Kicks and authenticity. The LAPD statement labels the reason for the raid as receiving stolen goods rather than the rumor that the raid had to do with seizing counterfeit goods.
In their statement, Cool Kicks spoke directly to this perception.
“It is important to clarify: there have been no allegations whatsoever from law enforcement that any of the products were counterfeit,” Cool Kicks wrote.
When visiting the Cool Kicks website, the top banner reads “EVERYTHING AUTHENTIC 100%” atop listings for rare sneakers tied to Virgil Abloh, Kanye West, and Travis Scott.
An issue of authenticity would be damaging not only to future business but could also create an uproar amongst previous customers questioning the validity of their previous purchases.
Nevertheless, the shop remains intent on the stance that they only sell authentic items.
“We are confident the truth will come out,” Cool Kicks said in their statement, “and the trust we have worked so hard to earn will remain strong.”
Thankfully for Cool Kicks, the LAPD does not appear to be questioning the authenticity of their goods.
However, the LAPD is using the Cool Kicks case to “underscore” a much larger problem with commercial supply chain theft, stating that “further arrests are expected.”
Stolen sneaker cargo has been a recurring issue in recent years with content creator Jacques Slade pointing out the 2025 train robbers in California and Arizona that resulted in $2 million worth of stolen Nike product.
LAPD and its partners appear intent on bursting the pipeline of stolen goods and the outlets in which they are sold.
Stay tuned for details as this story further develops.
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