Fair Competition Commission seizes counterfeit goods
The Fair Competition Commission (FCC) has seized counterfeit products worth 39.3m/- in an operation in Mwanza city between May 29, 2016 and June 2, 2016. The goods impounded in the operation are fake Samsung mobile phones worth 31.2 m/-, fake Admet mobile phones worth 2.1m/- shoe shine products worth 780,000/-, razor blades worth 1.7m/-, and different mobile phones accessories worth 3.4m/-.
The ultimate goal is to increase efficiency in the production, distribution and supply of goods and services. Establishment of FCC is a significant step in Tanzania’s effort to establish a market economy.
Why Make in India when you can Fake in India
Most of us know at least one person who went abroad during summer holidays and returned flaunting his/her Gucci bag and Prada glasses. Often there would be a clique, green with envy, touting it all to be ‘duplicate maal‘ (fake products). They weren’t always far from truth considering how rampant counterfeiting is, globally, when it comes to luxury products. India is one of the hotbeds for the same with every city boasting of at least one popular destination for premium brands at non-premium rates.
Lear More
US cracks down on counterfeiting
The illegal importation, distribution and sale of counterfeit products pose a significant and growing threat to the health and safety of the public, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials warned during a hearing before the Senate’s judiciary committee.
Bruce Foucart, director of the ICE-led National IP Rights Coordination Center, testified to the dangers of fake goods and their impact to consumer safety.
He said: “Law enforcement, public education, demand reduction and global collaboration are all critical to successfully address this crime.”
http://ipprotheinternet.com/ipprotheinternetnews/article.php?article_id=4904#.VzMQNNJ97IU
Lear MoreFuel smuggling syndicate exposed
Smuggling of refined petroleum products from Ghana to Burkina Faso through Paga, the capital of the Kassena Nankana West District of the Upper East Region, has now been taken over by tanker drivers.
The illegal activity, which is regarded as the most lucrative business in the district, is said to be known to the security operatives in the town, but much has not been done to halt it due to their political influence.
http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Fuel-smuggling-syndicate-exposed-436499
Lear MoreStructural reforms needed to stop agri smuggling
One may give the Aquino administration passing marks for keeping the economy grinding at its enviable six percent rate for the last six years. Or for bringing jobs to our unemployed by nurturing the business process outsourcing industry. Or pursuing its 4P commitment by reaching out to the poorest sectors of society, or restructuring the educational system by retraining teachers, building more classrooms and aligning to global K-12 standards.
Well, there’s a relatively good long list of accomplishment that really deserves a sincere pat on the back.
On the other hand, there’s a relatively lengthy list also of things that had not been done, starting from Day 1 of the current dispensation. And some of this would have mattered significantly to boosting further the nation’s and its people’s well-being.
http://www.philstar.com/business/2016/05/03/1579129/structural-reforms-needed-stop-agri-smuggling
Lear MoreGoing up in smoke: Terrorist financing and contraband cigarettes
In 2000, the United States authorities caught two Lebanese brothers for running a multimillion-dollar smuggling operation, moving low-tax cigarettes from North Carolina to high-tax Michigan.
It was a major coup for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. But the bureau was shocked when it realised where the profits of the syndicate were diverted to: designated terrorist organisation Hizbollah.
The bureau quickly stepped up its focus on the ties between cigarette smuggling and terrorism.
http://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/going-up-in-smoke-terrorist-financing-and-contraband-cigarettes
Lear More
Man admits sale of counterfeit Garmin products
An Arkansas man pleaded guilty Tuesday to selling hundreds of counterfeit Garmin map cards online.
William Yates, 26, of Fort Smith, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan., to a charge of copyright infringement.
According to federal prosecutors, Yates sold more than 870 counterfeit map products for more than $23,000. He sold the items on sites such as eBay, Amazon and Craigslist.
The sales took place between June 2012 and last August, according to federal court documents.
http://www.kansascity.com/news/local/crime/article75341442.html
Lear More
Smuggling, gas, FX threaten survival of Lucky Fibres
US-based funds aiding cigarette smuggling in India, says ITC chairman
The chairman of the largest cigarette maker in India, ITC Ltd., has alleged that U.S.-based organisations are aiding the anti-tobacco lobby in India and indirectly promoting tobacco/ cigarette smuggling in the country.
Various health advocacy groups and activists in India are currently spearheading the anti-tobacco campaign, calling for stringent anti-tobacco laws. The government has directed all the tobacco/ cigarette manufacturing companies to increase the size of health warnings on tobacco/cigarette packs to 85 percent, which has led to a few tobacco companies moving the Supreme Court against the order.
http://www.ibtimes.co.in/us-based-funds-aiding-cigarette-smuggling-india-says-itc-chairman-676874
Lear MoreTrailer holding 9 million smuggled cigarettes seized at Immingham Docks
A trailer containing almost nine million smuggled cigarettes has been discovered by Border Force officers at Immingham Docks.
The discovery was made on Thursday evening when officers searched an unaccompanied trailer that had arrived on a ferry from Vlaardingen, in The Netherlands.
Officers discovered 8,960,000 cigarettes concealed inside 20 wooden pallets which were labelled as wooden flooring.
Mark Robinson, Border Force Assistant Director for the Humber ports, said that, had the smuggling attempt proved successful, it could have cost the Treasury around £2.5 million in unpaid duty and VAT.