‘Tis the season, for counterfeit goods. With holiday shopping at a fever pitch, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers in Louisville saved customers from potentially being ripped off when they recently seized over $18 million worth of fake designer jewelry and watches .
The counterfeit designer watches, bracelets, necklaces, and earrings were discovered coming into the United States on December 17 and 18 when two shipments arrived from Hong Kong and China destined for residences in Arizona, Virginia, Florida and New York. The 962 pieces of counterfeit items were seized after CBP’s Centers of Excellence and Expertise, the agency’s trade experts, determined that they were all knock-offs.
During examination of the shipments to determine the admissibility of the goods, CBP officers found 459 bracelets displaying the logos of Cartier, Chanel, Fendi, Hermes, Louis Vuitton, and Van Cleef and Arpels, 43 pairs of earrings with Van Cleef and Arpels and Cartier logos, 20 necklaces with Van Cleef and Arpels logos, and 440 watches bearing the Rolex logo. None of them were legit…