LOUISVILLE, Ky. — U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers said they have seized counterfeit items through their Louisville Express Consignment Operation hub that had a street value worth $4.55 million.
In a news release, CBP said its officers inspected a March 8 shipment originating Hong Kong but headed to a home in Ontario, Canada.
Inside, the found fake Rolex, Hublot, Breitling, Tag Heuer and Omega watches that would have totaled $1.1 million if they were real, the CBP said.
The next night, two more packages were seized.
They said in the first shipment, it contained 1,034 items of counterfeit jewelry. That inspection revealed hundreds of fake Tommy Hilfiger necklaces, bracelet and ring combos from Rolex, Bvlgari, Louis Vuitton, Cartier, Versace, Hermes and Gucci.
These shipments also originated in Hong Kong but was headed to Miami. They would have been worth more than $1.19 million if they were real.
The second shipment, from United Arab Emirates and headed to California, contained a Richard Mille watch worth $2.25 million. It was also a fake.
LaFonda Sutton-Burke, a director with field operations in Chicago said it’s the CBP’s job to keep unsafe and pirated goods from harming the American public.
“This is yet another dramatic example of how CBP officers work every day to protect the American consumer, the US economy and US jobs,” she said in a statement.
The CBP said U.S. consumers spend more than $1 billion annually on intellectually property rights infringing goods and fall victim to about 20% of counterfeits sold illegally worldwide.
“Intellectual property theft threatens America’s economic vitality and funds criminal activities and organized crime,” said Thomas Mahn, Port Director-Louisville. “Our officers are dedicated to protecting private industry and consumers by removing these kinds of shipments from our commerce.”
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