Courterfeit goods seized
2011-08-04
CUSTOMS officials of the South African Revenue Services (SARS) in Paarl intercepted more than a million rands’ worth of suspected counterfeit goods this week. During a random stop-and-search operation which was held on the N1, a truck was found to be carrying various bags of clothing, electronic accessories, sunglasses and handbags. Suspected fake goods ranging from Springbok and New Zealand 2011 World Cup rugby jerseys and Louis Vittone handbags to flash drives, Puma cellphone covers and Diesel jeans were seized. A spokesperson for SARS customs officials, who requested to remain anonymous due to the nature of her work, said that the vehicle was evidently on its way from Johannesburg to Cape Town with the goods, when they intercepted it. “These items would mainly be sold to informal traders. “Not only does the entire country lose valuable revenue due to such illegal imports, but local industries are also dying because of it.” China is by far the biggest exporter of such goods and other supplying countries include India, Thailand and Turkey. SARS said that the owner of the consignment now has two weeks to prove that these items are not counterfeit. If the company is unable to do this, the items will be permanently confiscated and criminal charges will be laid against the owner. But according to sources, it has become increasingly difficult for police to detect fake goods as they closely resemble the authentic brands. A spokesperson for the police asked the public to think twice before buying items from unregistered shops and traders.
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