Cincinnati, Indianapolis Customs agents seize fake jewelry worth $8.7 million if genuine

Jeanne Houck, Cincinnati Enquirer
·1 min read
Customs agents in Cincinnati and Indianapolis say they recently seized nearly 16,700 pieces of counterfeit jewelry that would have been worth about $8.7 million if genuine.
Customs agents in Cincinnati and Indianapolis say they recently seized nearly 16,700 pieces of counterfeit jewelry that would have been worth about $8.7 million if genuine.

Customs agents in Cincinnati and Indianapolis say they recently seized nearly 16,700 pieces of counterfeit jewelry that would have been worth about $8.7 million if genuine.

Cincinnati agents seized 13,467 pieces of fake Bvlgari, Cartier, Coach, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Michael Kors, Rolex, Tiffany & Co., Tory Burch and Versace jewelry on Dec. 24 worth just over $3.7 million were they real, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a news release.

On Jan. 4, Indianapolis agents seized 1,272 pieces of jewelry falsely purporting to be multiple high-end brands that would have been worth just over $2 million if genuine, Customs said.

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Customs said Indianapolis agents the next day seized 1,958 pieces of fake Chanel, Dior, Hermes, Pandora, Prada and Tiffany & Co. jewelry worth nearly $3 million were they real.

Much of the jewelry came from China, Customs said, and some of it was headed to private residences in Nebraska, New York and Texas.

“As consumers increasingly purchase from online or third-party vendors, our officers are at the frontline to guard against defrauders expecting to make money selling fake merchandise,” LaFonda Sutton-Burke, director of Customs’ field operations in Chicago, said in the news release.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Fake Cartier, Gucci jewelry among baubles seized by Midwest Customs