MINNEAPOLIS — Editor's note: The video above first aired on KARE 11 in 2022.
Looking for luxury? U.S. Customs Border Protection (CBP) agents were at MSP Airport on Tuesday — but soon found they didn't quite get what they bargained for.
According to CBP, officers intercepted a shipment at the airport's Express Consignment Facility, where they discovered nearly 400 pieces of counterfeit designer jewelry, including bracelets, rings, earrings and necklaces.
The pieces boasted names and logos of luxury designers like Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Cartier and Chanel. After agents determined the items were phony, officials said they were seized for "infringing on the designers' protected trademarks."
Investigators said agents were not only tipped off by the items' poor quality, lack of labels and suspect packaging, but the shipment from Hong Kong to its intended target in Hutchinson was also mis-manifested.
Had the 384 items been authentic, authorities said the haul would have amounted to more than $482,000.
“This just goes to show you how criminals are using express consignment facilities to ship their items to unsuspecting consumers damaging our economy,” said LaFonda D. Sutton-Burke, director of the Field Operations-Chicago Field Office. “I want to congratulate our officers for their outstanding job. CBP is the first line of defense, and we will continue to protect the safety of consumers.”
According to CBP, nearly 23 million counterfeit items were seized by agents just last year.
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