HOPKINSVILLE, Ky. - Police said counterfeit handbags for sale are illegally made and may be funding terrorism.
Investigators said they made their first arrest last month.
Earnest Romious and James Bailem of Clarksville are charged with knowingly selling "counterfeit couture," according to police.
Detective Chuck Inman said if the merchandise were authentic, it would've generated $50,000 for designers like Gucci, Prada and Louis Vuitton.
Beyond the obvious copyright violation, one advocacy group said there is usually something much more sinister beneath the surface.
"The folks that are involved in trademark counterfeiting, to a large degree, are the same individuals that are involved in drug trafficking, human trafficking, uh.. and weapons trafficking," said Travis Johnson of the Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition.
And while it might be illegal in some states for you to buy counterfeit merchandise, authorities are really looking for people buying these bogus brand names in mass quantity.
Los Angeles, California - Customs and Border Protection import specialists yesterday seized two shipments of counterfeit handbags and backpacks with an estimated manufacture’s suggested retail price of $1.1 million and a domestic value of $89,236.
Although it’s impossible to know for sure, industry experts estimate counterfeiting cost at $100 billion to $200 billion annually, or nearly 10% of all electronic equipment sold worldwide. Most industry experts claim that the problem is escalating and note that, although the federal government and several industry associations have taken measures to limit counterfeiting, it continues to plague the components industry..jpg "http://www.turkishprivateinvestigator.com")
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