Federal officers at the Port of Louisville in Kentucky recently intercepted a shipment that contained 375 counterfeit watches. The manufacturer’s suggested retail price for the shipment would have exceeded $54 million if the timepieces had been authentic.
When U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers pulled the package for inspection, it was on its way from Hong Kong to a home in New York. CBP’s Centers of Excellence and Expertise, the organization’s trade experts, confiscated the fake Audemars Piguet watches for bearing counterfeit versions of registered and recorded trademarks after deeming them inauthentic.
“Intellectual property theft threatens America’s economic vitality and funds criminal activities and organized crime,” said Louisville’s Port Director, Philip Onken. “Our officers protect private industry and consumers by removing these kinds of shipments from our commerce.”
If at first you don’t succeed, fail and fail again
For some reason, counterfeiters continue to attempt to smuggle their fake watches through Louisville, despite the authorities catching them on multiple occasions…