UK police seize £2m+ of fake goods in pre-Christmas op

A crackdown on the trade in counterfeit goods in London ahead of the holiday period has netted a whopping £2.75m-worth of counterfeit products, including clothing, bags, trainers and watches.

The Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) at City of London Police has urged shoppers not to buy bargain designer products as gifts in the build-up to Christmas after seizing the counterfeits at just two shops in the area of Camden High Street in the UK capital.

PIPCU worked with the Metropolitan Police on the operation along with private investigation and protection firms Surelock, TM Eye and Lighthouse Security. Officers forced entry into a shop and storage unit during the early hours of yesterday (December 11), and a second shop was searched on the same day.

“Christmas presents a lucrative opportunity for counterfeiters, with many of us looking for the best bargains ahead of the festive break," said PIPCU detective sergeant Ben Hobbs.

However, he cautioned that "some consumers get conned, some end up with a poor-quality product and the money that runs through the counterfeit goods trade funds organised crime" activities including money laundering, human trafficking and drug operations.

"Businesses in Camden that actively engage in this illegal activity should know that it is not a matter of if, but when, we will enter their store to take away their counterfeit stock," said Hobbs.

PIPCU offers the following advice for shoppers that can help identify counterfeit products:

• Compare the product against the manufacturer's official website. Differences in the materials the item is made from and its dimensions are indicators that the product is fake.
• Check the product packaging to ensure that it’s of a good quality, doesn’t contain spelling errors and that the brand logo isn’t fuzzy.
• Compare the price of the product against the recommended retail price of the genuine item. If a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is.

When buying online:

• Check the website to ensure that the retailer has supplied its contact details and that it has a returns policy. Legitimate websites will also have a terms and conditions page, which outlines how a company uses the data you provide.
• Ensure the domain name doesn’t contain words such as ‘genuine’, ‘replica’, ‘discount’ and ‘offer’. The URL for a legitimate website will usually begin with the ‘https’ secure protocol.
• Be wary of retailers that ask for payments to be made via bank transfer. Most legitimate online retailers will accept payments via credit or debit cards and PayPal.
• Look up customer feedback on independent review platforms to ensure the retailer has a solid sales history.