by eyetee | March 3, 2008 12:00 am
The Federation of Swiss Watchmakers (FH) says a recent raid on several warehouses in Mexico City is further evidence of the link between organized crime and counterfeit jewellery.
During a nighttime raid last month, FH and about 300 police and federal authorities stormed suspected locations in the Tepito district, seizing more than 90,000 counterfeits of 10 Swiss watch brands.
The raids—carried out in the off-hours to prevent injuries—also netted large-calibre weapons, drugs, and a workshop for producing pirated CDs. Police arrested two people.
FH and its Latin American anti-counterfeiting unit, Groupement Anticontrefaçon (Anti-counterfeiting Group [GA]), spent six months investigating and preparing the operation in conjunction with local Mexican federal prosecutors and police.
The groups say the raids were “the most important seizure of fake watches ever carried out,” in Latin America and the seizures are another example that “trafficking in counterfeit watches is closely bound up with trafficking in weapons and narcotics overseen by organized crime.”
Formed in 2000, GA’s mandate is to train customs personnel and others to spot fakes, as well as lobbying for better anti-counterfeit legislation and enforcement.
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