A huge criminal counterfeit goods operation 'worth up to £65m a year' has been smashed. Investigations by Rochdale council trading standards led to the discovery of a trader at the heart of a huge distribution network of counterfeit goods across the UK.
Items seized ranged from illegal cigarettes and tobacco to high-value counterfeit items, such as jewellery, perfumes and cosmetic fillers. Rochdale council leader Neil Emmott praised the officers for their ‘tremendous efforts’.
“They have worked above and beyond their normal daily duties to physically seize counterfeit items worth millions of pounds and disrupted a counterfeit network worth more than £65m per year,” he said. Coun Emmott says that people may not realise that - as well as often being dangerous and always inferior - counterfeit goods are funding organised crime.
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“These traders do not pay taxes, maybe illegally claiming benefits and put genuine local traders who abide by the rules out of business,” he added. “You may think you have bagged a bargain, but by funding organised crime you have assisted crime gangs who are responsible for forced labour, drugs, human trafficking, prostitution and child labour.”
Officers carried out inspections across Rochdale borough in January, seizing illegal tobacco, cigarettes and vapes from a number of shops. In Heywood, they noticed two males acting suspiciously as they loaded items into a storage container. The two men were questioned and found to be connected to a further ten containers, rented at sites across the borough.
During searches, the containers were found to be holding high-value counterfeit items, including clothing, shoes, handbags, jewellery, perfumes, watches and cosmetic fillers. Around 60,000 items - with a retail value estimated at £9m - were seized over the course of two days.
And this month the team led an investigation into a trader found to be part of a large distribution network of counterfeit goods across the UK. It was discovered they had been sending 300 to 500 parcels per day through a courier network from an unknown premises in Manchester.
Working with the courier, the council intercepted some of the parcels and the items were later confirmed to be counterfeit. The sheer scale and size of the operation quickly became apparent when a further 11 pallets were intercepted in just one evening.
It was later discovered that shipments of 11 containers had been going out six days a week for a significant period of time. Their street was calculated to be more than £1m per week - or in excess of £65m per year.
Trading standards and the police discovered the parcels were being shipped to eight industrial units, some of which were operating as badging factories and distribution hubs. All the items were seized at these sites with assistance from the police, Lighthouse Security and Manchester council trading standards team.
The seized items filled three 40ft containers, with an estimated retail value of £15m.
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