Hong Kong police and customs officers have made the biggest seizure of counterfeit bags and accessories in a decade.
The authorities say they netted 30,000 bags in a two day operation on July 28 and 29, details of which have only just been revealed.
Customs and police say they successfully smashed a syndicate suspected of selling counterfeit goods by operating two upstairs showrooms and a storehouse in Tsim Sha Tsui and Tsuen Wan.
The operation involved a record seizure in terms of quantity among similar cases in the past decade. The more than 30,000 suspected counterfeit products have an estimated street value of about $3 million, including leather goods, watches, apparel products, footwear, sunglasses and perfume, were seized.
The syndicate was suspected of establishing a sales network with a membership scheme.
A man thought to be the mastermind of the syndicate and two women, aged between 32 and 37, were arrested and released on bail pending further investigation.
The Divisional Commander (Intellectual Property Transnational Investigation) of the Intellectual Property Investigation Bureau of Customs, Cheuk Tak-wai, and the Police assistant divisional commander (operations) of Tsim Sha Tsui Division, Ho Siu-tung, said at a press conference that Customs and the Police would continue to combat counterfeit activities with stringent joint enforcement actions. Customs also appealed to members of the public to shop at retail stores with a good reputation or at official brand stores.
Under the Trade Descriptions Ordinance, any person who sells or possesses for sale any goods with any forged trademark commits an offence. Upon conviction, offenders are liable to a maximum fine of $500,000 and imprisonment of five years.