Latest seizures target fake car parts, clothing, and accessories

© jörn buchheim / Fotolia.
A huge haul of counterfeit automotive parts was seized in the UAE. In parallel, German and US officials confiscated large shipments of counterfeit textiles and accessories, while a married couple in China faces charges for counterfeiting lingerie on a massive scale.

Tens of thousands of fake car parts confiscated in UAE
Customs authorities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) seized around 50,000 counterfeit car parts in five raids in the third quarter of 2019. The enforcement actions, which focused on auto parts dealers in the Dubai and Sharjah regions, were carried out with support of Al-Futtaim Toyota, Toyota’s trade partner in the UAE. According to a company statement, the Toyota dealer also provided training for government officials. “It is our firm commitment to protect consumers from the threat of dangerous counterfeit parts,” said Saud Abbasi, Managing Director of Al-Futtaim-Toyota. “We will continue training official inspectors to help in this fight,” he continued. According to Al-Futtaim-Toyota, counterfeit car parts worth over 26 million dirham (almost 6.4 million euros) in total were already seized in the UAE in 2019.

US customs seizes fake bags worth millions
At Washington Dulles International Airport, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials seized an airfreight shipment of counterfeit fashion accessories worth over 2 million dollars (more than 1.8 million euros) in early November. A total of some 4,000 counterfeit bags, purses, and backpacks carrying the brands Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Dior, Prada, and Hermes were seized. The counterfeits arrived from China and were bound for a destination in the New York City region.

Thousands of counterfeits intercepted at Düsseldorf Airport
The main customs office in Düsseldorf seized about 4,000 counterfeit textile products and handbags in an airfreight shipment arriving from Turkey. As was recently released, customs officials had already stopped the goods destined for the Dominican Republic in mid-October at the freight center of Düsseldorf Airport. According to customs authorities, the officers noticed the counterfeit products as they were unsorted, partly unpacked, and of noticeably low quality.

Chinese couple counterfeits lingerie on a massive scale
In Quanzhou, Southeast China, Chinese police officers arrested a married couple accused of counterfeiting lingerie and other textiles in bulk and selling it online. During raids in Quanzhou and in Wuxi, located near Shanghai, investigators seized more than 56,000 products of counterfeit lingerie, pyjamas and leggings carrying the Victoria’s Secret brand, as well as a large number more counterfeit garments of other brands. Customers had alerted the authorities of the allegedly criminal duo that is said to have been active since 2017 and is now facing legal proceedings.

Sources: Al-Futtaim Toyota; CBP; Hauptzollamt Düsseldorf; Xinhuanet

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