Author: adminficci

Fake Drug Pipeline Undercuts Malaria Progress

The Wall Street Journal examines the global trade in fake, counterfeit and otherwise substandard  malaria medication, in which China and particularly Guangzhou’s African community appear to play a  substantial part. From Benoît Faucon, Colum Murphy and Jeanne Whalen: When customs officials in Luanda, Angola, searched a cargo container from China, they found something hidden inside a shipment of loudspeakers: 1.4 million packets of counterfeit Coartem, a malaria drug made by Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis AG.  The discovery, last June, led to one of the largest seizures of phony medicines ever. The fakes—enough to treat more than half the country’s annual malaria cases, had they been genuine—are part of a proliferation of bogus malaria drugs in Africa that threatens to undermine years of progress in tackling the disease. China’s foreign ministry said the country “has always attached great importance to drug safety and resolutely combats the…manufacture and sale of counterfeit medicines.” The ministry added that it is “not aware” of evidence that any fake Coartem found in Africa came from China.

 http://chinadigitaltimes.net/2013/05/fake-drug-pipeline-undercuts-malaria-progress/

Schaeffler destroys 26 tons of counterfeit rolling bearings

Rolling bearings of various types and sizes are conveyed by the gripper arm of an excavator into a scrap press with a loud crash. The bearings leave the press chopped and broken into pieces or so badly damaged that they are rendered unusable. Large-size bearings with an outside diameter of more than one meter, which are even too big for the scrap press, are destroyed with a cutting torch. All these bearings are counterfeit products marked with the INA and FAG brand, which were confiscated in raids. The objective of this operation is to make the bearings unusable. After a spectacular operation in 2007, in which around 40 tons of counterfeit bearings were destroyed at the Schaeffler company site in Schweinfurt, and numerous other operations to destroy counterfeit goods worldwide, around 26 tons of counterfeit bearings with a value of more than one million euros were destroyed this time at the premises of INTERSEROH Franken Rohstoff GmbH in Schweinfurt. A large proportion of the counterfeit products originate from raids at bearing distributors in Europe, for example, in Italy and Great Britain. But some of the counterfeit bearings are also from Germany. “Brand and product piracy is not a phenomenon that is limited to China or South East Europe. It also takes place right on our doorstep”, says Ingrid Bichelmeir-Böhn, leader of the Global Brand Protection Team at Schaeffler.

City busts gang of swindlers selling fake iPhones

Shanghai police have busted a gang who conned people by claiming to be employees telecom companies and selling fake iPhones.    The gang has so far admitted to more than 2,000 scams nationwide this year and raked in profits of over 300,000 yuan (US$48,983), police said. Officers said they had detained 18 suspects, including their gang leader, surnamed Liu. The con game came to light on May 15 when a woman claimed she received a call from a telecom company staffer who was promoting iPhones for 1,600 yuan. The caller said the money would be returned to them in installments in two years. When she received the iPhone, she realized she was cheated.  Police traced the gang through the courier companies who did their deliveries. Two undercover police officers raided Liu’s warehouse on May 23 and seized nearly 400 fake cell phones of famous brands like iPhone and Nokia and more than 2,100 fake recharging cards.

http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90882/8260759.html

Fake Knorr, Maggi, cigarettes confiscated by BOC

The Bureau of Customs (BOC) within a month scored its third haul of fake and illegally imported goods. Its latest seizure was counterfeit Knorr and Maggi food seasoning items and Nescafe products that were found in a Manila warehouse. “Through the help of its assets from the private sector, the bureau’s Intelligence Group has once again caused the seizure of these illegally imported goods,” said Customs Commissioner Ruffy Biazon.  In the warehouse, Customs authorities also confiscated smuggled Marlboro, Winston and Fortune cigarettes. These were all fake goods from China. Customs authorities placed the total value of the illegally imported items at P30 million.

“This definitely is a big boost to the local business industry. Otherwise, had these illegally imported goods been able to get to the local market, it could have affected the local tobacco industry and business,” Biazon said.

CBP, French Customs Seize Critical Counterfeit Electronic Components

In partnership with French Customs, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently completed Operation Core Systems, a bilateral intellectual property rights enforcement operation that targeted counterfeit critical computer and other electronic components, including semiconductors, computer networking equipment, hard drives, and memory cards, which are a threat to both the U.S. and France. Conducted from Nov. 1, 2012 through April 30, the operation resulted in the seizure of 480 shipments of potentially harmful counterfeit electronic components. “CBP is proud to work with our French Customs partners on such an important issue,” said CBP Assistant Commissioner Al Gina. “Intellectual property rights violations have the potential to cause great harm to our country’s economy as well as the American public’s health and safety. Building these types of international partnerships will continue to become increasingly important to facilitating a safe and secure flow of trade.”  “The Core Systems operation gave us a better understanding of the global threat presented by counterfeit critical electronic components, the opportunity to cooperate with the right holders, and to make significant seizures,” said François Richard, French Customs Attaché in Washington D.C. “It is the third bilateral IPR enforcement operation organized by our two agencies, and for sure not the last.”

http://www.imperialvalleynews.com/index.php/news/latest-news/4309-cbp-french-customs-seize-critical-counterfeit-electronic-components.html

Spurious liquor claims 4 lives in Sultanpur district

Celebratory drinking claimed four lives in Sultanpur district on Friday four people from the groom’s side, including his father, died after consuming spurious liquor. In another incident that was reported from a village in Amethi district, ten people had lost their lives after consuming illicit liquor on May 8. Ramnarayan Dhuria, a resident of Shrirampur Lamoli village in Sultanpur had organised his daughter’s wedding at the village on Friday. 55-year-old Mastram Dhuria, father of the groom, along with several others arrived at the Sultanpur village from Ambedkar Nagar district. Ramnarayan served two bottles including a branded whisky bottle to Mastram, Ramchandra Verma (30), Indrajeet Verma (35) and Rajendra (28). The group had consumed one bottle when they started feeling uneasy. The liquor was apparently spiked with some dangerous chemicals locally. The condition of the group started deteriorating and three members were rushed to a nearby hospital. Meanwhile, Indrajeet said he was sick and decided to sleep at the village as he felt dizzy. The three died at the hospital while undergoing treatment while Indrajeet was found dead in the morning. Senior officials from district administration, excise department and Sultanpur police visited the village on Saturday. The officials took the whisky bottles in custody and sent the bodies for autopsy. The incident took place under the jurisdiction of Motipur police station and owner of the store that sold the liquor to Ramnarayan as well as persons responsible for manufacturing of the illicit liquor will be booked, said police. In the Amethi incident, 10 persons died after consuming illicit country liquor during a local event at Miyan Ka Purwa village. Several including the manufacturer and supplier were arrested subsequently.

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-05-26/lucknow/39537390_1_spurious-liquor-illicit-liquor-4-lives

Counterfeit baseball caps at center of federal investigation

Federal agents are investigating a case of counterfeit baseball hats coming from Hong Kong into the U.S. through the Port of Milwaukee. And the suspect, Darvin Moore, is no stranger to investigators. Moore, 39, was convicted in 2004 on two counts of trafficking in counterfeit goods and received five months behind bars. Moore is named as the suspect in a scheme to traffic in counterfeit baseball hats, according to a search warrant unsealed in federal court in Milwaukee recently. Moore could not be reached for comment. He is not charged in the current case. According to the search warrant by an agent from the Department of Homeland Security, more than 500 counterfeit baseball hats were seized at the Port of Milwaukee in April and May of last year. They bore the logos of teams from the NBA, NFL and other professional leagues. The hats were from Hong Kong and supposed to be delivered to “Dravin Moore” in Milwaukee, before they were intercepted. The agents flagged the packages because they came from a sender known to deal in counterfeit goods, according to the warrant.  One of the shipments was scheduled to go to William Spanos, of Iron River, Mich. Contacted recently, Spanos said he ordered the hats over the Internet after receiving an online solicitation.

http://www.jsonline.com/news/crime/counterfeit-baseball-caps-at-center-of-federal-investigation-b9917821z1-208726071.html

P25-M counterfeit drugs seized

A container van loaded with P25 million worth of fake medicines was confiscated by the Bureau of Customs (BOC) at the Manila International Container Port (MICP). Customs Commissioner Ruffy Biazon said there were 20 pallets of counterfeit medicines found inside the 40-footer container van consigned to Mountain Glory Agri Sales Corp. These medicines bear the brands like Simvastatin, Centrum Multivitamins, Perigo (Ibuprofen), and Amoxycillin, among others. He said the consignee is not accredited by the Food and Drugs Administration to import medicines, thus making its operations illegal. “It has no license,” Biazon said as he personally inspected the illegally imported goods at the Manila port. The commissioner said that Mountain Glory is answerable for violation of R.A. 8293 or the Intellectual Property Rights Law in relation to R.A. 9711 or the Food and Drugs Administration Law. Personnel of the Customs Intellectual Property Rights Division (IPRD) got suspicious over the shipment when they noticed that the counterfeit medicines were stored in a “dry” container van with no temperature control and they were right on the dot. Lawyer Zsae Carrie De Guzman, head of the IPRD, said the seized medicines were either about to expire, if not fit for human consumption. This was the second time in May that the BOC-IPRD has confiscated counterfeit items entering the ports.

Recently, they raided two storage facilities in Tondo, Manila based on the Letter of Authority issued by Biazon. Seized were 272 boxes containing 100 reams per box of Marlboro cigarettes, 30 boxes with 50 reams of Marlboro cigarettes per box, 10 boxes of Winston cigarettes, and 11 boxes of Fortune cigarettes. Included were 432 boxes of Knorr Sinigang Mix and 23 boxes of Maggi Magic Sarap. These goods were illegally imported from China and worth P25 million.