Fake haute couture seized at border

EASTPORT — Eagle-eyed U.S. Customs & Border Protection officers intercepted nearly $33,000 in counterfeit haut couture at the international border recently.

The agency’s Office of Field Operations discovered the knockoff designer goods in the cab of a commercial vehicle during an inspection. The driver was attempting to leave the U.S. and enter Canada.

“CBP officers located a commercial quantity of designer-brand purses, wallets, sunglasses, and clothing displaying the names of designers Gucci, Michael Kors, Kate Spade and Chanel during the inspection. After additional questioning, the driver of the truck admitted the items were counterfeit and he intended to sell them in Canada,” CBP officials said in a news release.

The date of the bust and the name of the driver were not released. The driver also happened to be the subject of an arrest warrant in Georgia for failing to appear in court on an assault charge.

An import specialist at CBP’s Consumer Products & Mass Merchandising Center confirmed the items were counterfeit and they should be seized for infringement of the manufacturers’ intellectual property rights. The manufacturers’ suggested retail price of the counterfeit merchandise was $32,900, according to CBP.

“CBP helps drive the U.S. economic engine by facilitating lawful international trade and travel through the enforcement of hundreds of U.S. laws and regulations ranging from agriculture to intellectual property rights, said Sweetgrass Area Port Director Daniel Escobedo. “Trade in these illegitimate goods is associated with smuggling and other criminal activities, and often funds criminal enterprises.”

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.