Sponsored by the Gemological Institute of America
Agents seize $2.85M in fake Tiffany goods
Officers with U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized a shipment of 1,200 counterfeit Tiffany & Co. bracelets this week at Miami International Airport.
Miami--U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers seized a shipment of 1,200 counterfeit Tiffany & Co. bracelets this week at Miami International Airport.
If genuine and sold at MSRP, the Tiffany pieces--which were copies of various models of the retailer’s iconic .925 sterling silver “Return to Tiffany” bracelet--could have totaled as much as $2.85 million.
In a news release, the CBP said it agents grew suspicious of the counterfeit bling because the bracelets “did not appear to be of the quality consistent with the products normally manufactured by the trademark holders;” in this case, Tiffany.
Import specialists with the CBP examined the bracelets more closely and determined that the bracelets were indeed counterfeit.
MIA Port Director Christopher Maston said the CBP has an “exceptional” team of officers and import specialists who work closely with companies like Tiffany to identify products that infringe on companies’ intellectual property.
Jewelry and watches by the industry’s best-known brands are among the world’s most copied goods and, last year, they were also the most seized in the U.S., surpassing even fake handbags.
A report from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security released in the spring stated that in 2014, CBP officials nabbed fake jewelry and watches worth a total of $375.4 million at retail, representing 31 percent of the total dollar amount of counterfeit goods seized all year.
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