Customs says syndicate believed to have sold bogus health supplements online, in addition to allegedly handling other counterfeit items
Hong Kong customs officers have uncovered the department’s largest-ever case involving counterfeit goods sold online, arresting seven people and seizing HK$15 million (US$1.9 million) worth of items, including bogus medications and fake Louis Vuitton and Hermès handbags.
Hong Yan, a senior inspector with the Customs and Excise Department’s intellectual property general investigation unit, said officers arrested four men and three women on Tuesday last week at a storage unit in Yuen Long after beginning investigations in June.
“Customs officers have discovered that the company receiving funds from parcels [of fakes] ordered from the online platform could be traced to a storage unit in Yuen Long,” he said.
The department said the syndicate was believed to have operated on social media and claimed to be selling goods under a local brand for Chinese medicine health supplements, but had also allegedly possessed other types of counterfeit items.
