1 shipment 243 fake designer watches worth over $6 million seized by CBP officers in Chicago

CHICAGO--This past weekend U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers from the Chicago Anti-Terrorism Contraband Enforcement Team (A-TCET) stationed at a Cargo Examination Station near Chicago O’Hare International Airport inspected a shipment which contained designer brand watches.

The shipment arrived from China on May 4 and was ultimately seized for bearing counterfeit version of the names and logos of the following designer brands: Audermars Piguet, Breitling, Bvlgari, Cartier, Omega, Paneria, Patek Phillipe, Richard Mille, Rolex, Tag Heuer, and Vacheron. A total of 243 different watches were seized. The shipment had an ultimate destination to an address in Bensonville, Illinois.

The items were deemed to be counterfeit by CBP’s Centers of Excellence and Expertise, the agency’s trade experts, and if genuine, would have had a combined Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price over $6.64 million. Chicago CBP recently issued a press release highlighting the $9.22 million in counterfeit watches seized in the month of April.

“The distribution of counterfeit goods defrauds U.S. consumers and has a significant adverse impact on businesses by robbing our country of jobs and tax revenues,” said LaFonda D. Sutton-Burke, Director of Field Operations, Chicago Field Office. “CBP is the first line of defense, and our officers intercepted this threat before these fake items were introduced into the commerce and reached consumers, which provides economic security for our nation.”

There are several ways consumers can protect themselves from spending their money on fakes:

• Purchase goods directly from the trademark holder or from authorized retailers.
• Know what price the product should be selling for. If the items is priced well below a reasonable value, it could be counterfeit. If a price seems too good to be true, then it is.
• Look for legitimate web sites that offer customer service contact information and return policies.
• Review CBP’s E-Commerce Counterfeit Awareness Guide for Consumers.

Commonly, these goods are sold in underground outlets and on third party e-commerce websites. Counterfeit commodities fund smugglers and members of organized crime. Consumers often believe they are buying a genuine product but soon realize the item is substandard.

Trade in counterfeit and pirated goods threatens America’s innovation economy, the competitiveness of our businesses, the livelihoods of U.S. workers, and, in some cases, national security and the health and safety of consumers. To combat the entry of counterfeit and pirated goods into America, CBP targets and seizes imports of counterfeit and pirated goods and enforces exclusion orders on patent-infringing and other IPR violative goods.

CBP Trade protects the intellectual property rights of American businesses through an aggressive Intellectual Property Rights enforcement program, safeguarding them from unfair competition and use for malicious intent while upholding American innovation and ingenuity. Suspected violations can be reported to CBP here.

The dangers of buying counterfeit products aren’t always obvious to consumers. Particularly, when shopping online, beware of counterfeit goods. Fake goods can lead to real dangers. For more information, visit The Truth Behind Counterfeits page.

If you have any information regarding suspected fraud or illegal trade activity, please contact CBP through the e-Allegations Online Trade Violations Reporting System or by calling 1-800-BE-ALERT -IPR violations can also be reported to the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center at https://www.iprcenter.gov/referral/ or by telephone at 1-866-IPR-2060.

CBP’s border security mission is led at 328 ports of entry by CBP officers from the Office of Field Operations.  Please visit CBP Ports of Entry to learn more about how CBP’s Office of Field Operations secures our nation’s borders. Learn more about CBP at www.CBP.gov.

Follow CBP on Twitter @CBPChicago and @DFOChicago. Visit CBP’s YouTube channel to learn more about how CBP’s Office of Field Operations secures our nation’s borders.