NEW YORK (Sputnik) — Counterfeit condoms and other personal care items worth more than half a million dollars were seized by French and US customs agents, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency said in a statement.
“The joint operation, conducted from April 8 through May 4, resulted in the seizure of 76 shipments of more than 31,000 counterfeit items for a combined manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $541,000,” the statement said Thursday.
The CBP stated a portion of the items may have contained dangerous chemicals and bacteria.
“Operation Bathe and Beaute reflects our ongoing efforts to interdict illegal trade in counterfeit merchandise, which threatens the competitiveness of legitimate business and can jeopardize consumer health and safety,” CBP Assistant Commissioner Brenda Smith said in the statement.
Most of the goods originated from China and Hong Kong and were seized at an array of US ports of entry.
Worldwide cross-border trade in physical counterfeit items costs the global economy $250 billion annually, according to the US Global Intellectual Property Center.
