Officials said that more than $32 million worth of fake Viagra pills, replica of Air Jordans, and other counterfeit products have recently been seized in shipments arriving from China.
Last week, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and other law enforcement agencies seized the illicit products from three containerized shipments at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
The seized goods included more than one million fake Viagra pills, headphones, purses, belts, and car emblems. Also, the shipments included fake Dior x Air Jordan sneakers worth thousands of dollars.
The bust shows criminals have been seeking to exploit unwitting holiday shoppers with fake products that may pose “significant health and safety concerns,” the officials said.
Carlos Martel, CBP director of field operations in LA, said, “Criminals are exploiting e-commerce platforms to sell counterfeit and often dangerous goods to unwitting holiday shoppers.”
“Counterfeiters are focused on making a profit; they are not focused on consumer safety,” said Donald Kusser, CBP port director of the LA/Long Beach Seaport.
He warned, “Buying counterfeit goods can expose you and your family to health and safety risks while the proceeds support criminal enterprises.”
The CBP authorities also said that buying counterfeit goods also sabotages the U.S. and helps fund criminal activity.
Special Agent in Charge David Prince of Homeland Security Investigations said, “Commercial piracy and product counterfeiting undermine the U.S. economy, rob Americans of jobs, stifle American innovation and promote other types of crimes.”
In the financial year 2020, CBP officials seized over 26,000 shipments containing fake products whose estimated value, if they had been genuine, would be more than $1 billion, the agency said. The CBP officials have urged anyone with information about fake products to contact the agency.
