The US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) seized five shipments carrying nearly 2,200 pieces of counterfeit jewelry valued at over $25 million.
The first packages customs confiscated in Louisville, Kentucky, arrived from China on June 19, it said Monday. The shipment contained 318 bracelets with fake Cartier trademarks, while the second delivery from Hong Kong included 490 necklaces, 205 pairs of earrings and 80 rings bearing forged Van Cleef & Arpels trademarks. A day later, authorities nabbed another three packages from China that contained a total of 800 fake Cartier bracelets.
The 2,193 items were believed to carry a counterfeit mark representing the CBP’s Centers of Excellence and Expertise, the agency’s trade experts. Had the products been legitimate, the five shipments would have been worth more than $25.3 million at retail.
“Intellectual property theft threatens America’s economic vitality and funds criminal activities and organized crime,” said LaFonda D. Sutton-Burke, director of field operations at the Chicago Field Office. “When consumers purchase counterfeit goods, legitimate companies lose revenue, which can force those companies to cut jobs. Our officers are dedicated to protecting private industry and consumers by removing these kinds of shipments from our commerce.”
China and Hong Kong remain the top sources of seizures, accounting for about 90% in fiscal 2024. Over the past three years, the most confiscated items under Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) infringements have been jewelry, watches, handbags and wallets. Shoppers may believe they are purchasing an authentic product, but soon discover the item is fake. Not a “victimless crime,” IPR theft harms American consumers, businesses, and legitimate manufacturers, CBP stressed.
Image: One of the seized counterfeit Cartier bracelets. (US Custom and Border Protection)
