CBP Seizes More Fake Nike Shoes at LA/Long Beach Seaport
(Wednesday, May 07, 2008)
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Long Beach, Calif. - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at Los Angeles/Long Beach seaport continue to seize millions of dollars worth of counterfeit Nike footwear. In the latest seizure on May 5, CBP officers confiscated 18,560 pairs of fake Nike athletic shoes and 252 pairs of generic shoes that were put at the tail of the container to conceal the counterfeit Nikes – the scheme didn’t work.
The appraised domestic value of the shipment was $521,000. Had the shoes been legitimate the value would have been $2.6 million. Nike officials advised CBP that they had not authorized the importer or exporter to use their trademark.
Kevin Weeks, director of CBP Los Angeles Field Operations said, "Fiscal year 2008 is shaping up as a record year for CBP seizures of counterfeit goods entering LA/Long Beach seaport. As of mid-year, CBP in the Port of Los Angeles/Long Beach has seized significantly more fake goods than fiscal year 2007, which totaled over $20.6 million worth of counterfeit products."
In this incident two shipping containers that arrived at the Port of Long Beach from China were selected for CBP examination on May 5. The contents were declared as "drainage pipeline fitting." Following intensive inspection of the shipment CBP officers discovered the counterfeits and seized the goods for federal violation of merchandise bearing a counterfeit trademark. Due to the false manifest, smuggling charges were added to the offense. The shoes were consigned to an importer in New York - likely a fictitious address.
The 18,560 pairs of fake Nike Air Force 1 ‘07 and Air Jordan 4 shoes will be destroyed.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.
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