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Makers of 53,000 Counterfeit Luxury Items Nabbed

Posted December. 21, 2009 14:18,   

한국어

Authorities Sunday nabbed two men who allegedly made and sold 53,000 pieces of counterfeit luxury goods over a two-year period.

The Korea Customs Service sought arrest warrants for the two men on the charge of violating trademark law. The two are suspected of making and selling fake luxury brand purses and handbags for 100 billion won (85 million U.S. dollars).

The suspects are known to have set up a factory at a home in Seoul’s Eunpyeong district in August 2007 to make counterfeit purses and handbags with forged brand labels, including Louis Vuitton and Chanel.

They stored the fake goods at a secret storage site in an underground parking lot in Seoul’s Gangseo district. They transported the items by vehicle and received cash for them, avoiding a crackdown.

The counterfeit goods were sold at stores in Seoul’s Itaewon district and in Busan, two areas which are frequented by Japanese tourists.

A customs official said, “They traded counterfeit goods so carefully, carrying them only before sunrise. Their neighbors were unaware of the factory and storage in their neighborhood.”

“If rival companies in the industry had not informed us of their illegal act, it would’ve been impossible to catch them.”

The customs office raided the factory and the storage site, seizing 3,000 pieces of counterfeit goods and raw materials. The list of transactions for 50,000 pieces was obtained by tracing bank accounts.



peacechaos@donga.com