Smuggling ‘Rife in Clark Freeport Zone
Some firms at the Clark Freeport Zone (CFZ) are being used in the smuggling of raw materials or finished products for export, with most of them usually ending up in the local market. Voluminous reports obtained by Manila Times showed that the Clark Development Corp’s (CDC) anti-smuggling task force has been apprehending some movers and confiscating items about to be smuggled out of the ecozone. The most recent apprehensions by the Task Force on Revenue and Tax Monitoring led to the confiscation last November 9 of an undetermined number of cut gloves and five rolls of anti-static fabric, 19 boxes of sticky mats and three boxes of cotton M-3 wiper. On June 17, the task force seized a truckload of computer servers and accessories after the driver presented only a gate pass from Rapat of Philexcel Business Park and not a permit to bring the items out of the zone. Arnel Maguillo, chief of the anti-smuggling task force, reported at least 50 cases of interceptions and confiscations of goods about to be smuggled out of the zone between December 2004 and June this year. The 50th entry of the group’s accomplishment report said: “Secured all evidences regarding shipment of luxury cars (brand-new 2-door Gallardo Lamborghini worth $167,850 or P7.4mn) coming from Dubai via Subic and arrived at Clark Customs Clearance Area last Dec 22, 2004. Submitted official report to the office of the president, task force chairman.”
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Counterfeiting: don’t let it ruin your Christmas
It has been reported that the sale and distribution of counterfeit goods seems to escalate during the Christmas season. Counterfeit goods are everywhere, from fake clothing and detergents to poor quality toys which is particularly problematic at this time of the year. As a consumer, you may choose to buy counterfeit goods and therefore are prepared to take the risk that the goods are in some way sub-standard but what about the increasing number of us who end up with counterfeit goods believing we had purchased the genuine item? A consumer could be left with a product they are disappointed with, and the legitimate brand owner is left with potentially declining profits and dwindling goodwill in the brand. For all businesses, it is becoming increasingly important to understand where your product stands in the marketplace. If you have a suspicion that someone may be selling your product on-line or they are copying your brand identity or producing counterfeit products, there are options available to you to ensure that you do not lose any further money, brand reputation, or customers. Expert Investigations, a nationwide commercial detective investigation agency have a wealth of experience investigating counterfeit product cases working on behalf of Intellectual property firms, authorities and brand owners.
http://realbusiness.co.uk/article/25056-counterfeiting-dont-let-it-ruin-your-christmas
Lear MoreSmuggled khair wood seized from Chikhli.
SURAT: The forest officials in Navsari’s Chikhli taluka seized smuggled khair (catechu) wood worth Rs 70000 hidden somewhere in the farm field. Official sources said the khair wood is in huge demand across the country for its use to make katha, a main ingredient in the paan and other tobacco and non-tobacco products like paan-masala etc. The forest areas in south Gujarat including Surat, Navsari, Valsad and Dangs have khair woods in abundant quantity. Based on the tip-off by the locals, who told officials about the large-scale smuggling of khair wood going on in the area, forest officials in Chikhli raided the Limda Falia at Kangwai village in Chikhli and seized around four tones of khair wood lying in the farm owned by one Mohan Dhanjibhai. Sources said that the Kangwai village has been infamous for khair wood smuggling as the number of seizures have increased in the last couple of months. “We have been keeping a close vigil on Kangwai village and its residents who are involved in khair wood smuggling from the past couple of months. This is the fourth incident of khair wood seizure reported from the village” said a forest officer.
Lear MorePassenger arrested at JFK after allegedly smuggling cocaine in hair care products
AMAICA (WABC) — An arriving passenger at JFK Airport was confronted by Customs after hair care products within her bag tested positive for cocaine. Erika Rodriguez de los Santos was arriving on a flight from the Dominican Republic in November when officers noticed five hair care products in her bag were unusually heavy. When officers searched the containers, an oil-like substance tested positive for cocaine. The total weight of the seized cocaine was 6.27 pounds. Rodriguez was arrested, and faces federal narcotics smuggling charges, and will be prosecuted by the U.S. District Attorney’s Office.
Lear MoreSeafood being smuggled to KSA through Dubai after import ban
Smuggling of fresh seafood to Saudi Arabia is going through Dubai transit after the Kingdom placed restrictions on import of Indian, Bangladeshi and Pakistani fish and shrimp products recently, fisheries sources said on Friday. “Saudi municipal administration banned sales of fisheries items exported from sub-continent countries after finding pig-meat ingredients in Indian farm fish and shrimp,” sources said, adding that the Pakistani seafood export also suffered for not qualified to the Kingdom’s food specifications. About a couple of weeks ago, Kuwait had also rejected Pakistan’s consignments of fresh seafood products for being unsuitable for human consumption, for which exporters of frozen fish and shrimp products widely held Marine Fisheries Department (MFD) responsible. Sources said that both Saudi Arabia and Kuwait were the major markets for Pakistani fresh seafood items. They feared that losing of either market will pull down the country’s annual foreign exchange earning from fisheries sector. “India’s farm fish and shrimp outstretched their shares to upstage export of Pakistan in Middle East but soon were found with prohibited substance of pig-meat in the kingdom major cities, which also caused import and sales restriction to Pakistani seafood too,” sources said.
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Police Bust Illegal Cigarette Factory in Sofia
Police have busted an illegal cigarette factory in Sofia, according to Svetoslav Lazarov, Chief Secretary of the Interior. Speaking Saturday at a press conference, he informed that the factory had been discovered on Friday in Sofia’s Orlandovtsi district in an operation of the “National Police” Chief Directorate of the Interior and the police officers from the 5th Regional Police Directorate in Sofia. He announced that the unpaid excise duty from the seized 5 tonnes of cut rag tobacco amounted to BGN 760 000 and the factory produced an estimated 2 tonnes of tobacco a week, or 8 tonnes a month. Lazarov said that the tobacco had been delivered to the factory, where it had been cut, processed and used to make cigarettes and packs of tobacco. He specified that the scheme had functioned for around 3 years, and the illegal tobacco products had been delivered to restaurants and pet shops, from where they had been distributed across the country. During the police operation, a man and a woman believed to be the chief organizers of the illegal activity were arrested at the factory. The two were in charge of promotion by online ads and brochures, there were also contracts with clients. Police keep searching for the other participants in the crime ring.
http://www.novinite.com/view_
Major counterfeiting operation busted on Indy’s east side
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (Dec. 11, 2013)– Investigators with the U.S. Secret Service believe they have shut down a counterfeit money operation responsible for a recent increase in fake money across the state. According to the Secret Service and IMPD records the raid took place around 6:30pm at 26 North Riley Avenue. SWAT units entered the home and officers recovered hundreds of thousands of dollars in countefeit cash in various stages of production. US Secret Service Special Agent in Charge Gary Durham tells Fox59 there were printers still running when police raided the home. Other sources say there was an armed sentry in the home. Members of the IMPD Violent Crimes Unit (VCU) were instrumental in identifying the location, setting up the raid. Investigators spent several hours carrying fake money, printers, computers and paper supplies out of the home. They also confiscated a security system and items associated with a meth lab, according to sources. “Bags and boxes and just about everything but the kitchen sink,” said neighbor Deloris Clark. Investigators also found various drugs and guns inside the home. Arrested in the raid were Brandon Clark, 24, Timothy Deutscher, 35, and Jessica Fisher, 30. Clark and Fisher have Indianapolis addresses. Deutscher’s address is in Columbus, Indiana.
http://fox59.com/2013/12/11/major-counterfeiting-operation-busted-on-indys-east-side/#ixzz2niFcm6Ag
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Chinese fakes bully Vietnamese products on home market
Copycats of many Vietnamese gadgets have been smuggled to Vietnam from China, leaving the real companies to deal with poor quality complaints, even bankruptcy. Chinese makers quickly follow new product launches in Vietnam, and their versions resemble the authentic products, only they are made from cheaper materials, representatives of Vietnamese companies told Tuoi Tre in a report Monday. Nguyen Cong Quyen, board chairman of Ho Chi Minh City-based consumer electronics producer Vietnam-Japan Technology JSC, said he was “panicked” with a wave of more than 20 complaining customers over the past two weeks. Quyen said Chinese fraudsters also sell the fakes at higher prices with promotional bonuses, and many customers have come to his company’s headquarters to ask for gifts such as pots and cooking oil as promised earlier. “The fraudsters provide our address, telephone numbers, faking our warranty papers and even our seal to convince people,” he said. Quyen said the Chinese makers have made great efforts to make sure it’s hard to tell the genuine and the fake products apart. “Immediately after we added a Vietnamese instruction voice to the products, the fakes also had it.”
Lear MoreSmuggling of various goods causes over Rs 22 billion loss to kitty
Pakistan’s markets are full of smuggled goods ranging from cosmetic to cigarettes, but a few individuals involved in the business are interested in legalizing their business, a survey conducted by Business Recorder revealed. Sale of smuggled petrol and diesel (including LPG) in Balochistan, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and South Punjab has reached its peak, which is causing above Rs 22 billion annual losses to national kitty. Business Recorder contacted different people and market places well-known for smuggled goods to determine the volume of smuggled goods circulating in the national economy and concluded that an estimated Rs 16 billion smuggled tea is being traded in the country, Rs 18 billion cigarettes, Rs 22 billion petroleum products including smuggled LPG, Rs 25 billion auto-parts as well as vehicles and over Rs 200 billion other products including cosmetics clothing, footwear, medicines, spices, juices, electronics and other items.
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4 fake food products drawing venture capital
“Don’t eat anything your great grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food,” writes food enthusiast and intellectual Michael Pollan in “Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual.” Would great-grandma recognize faux meat made in the lab as something edible? With news that the Bill Gates’-backed Hampton Creek Foods has launched Just Mayo, a vegan mayonnaise based on the fake eggs the company is developing, the issue of faux foods is in the news again. While natural foods with minimal processing have been the gold standard for nutrition- and sustainability-minded eaters ever since the advent of junk food, a new way of thinking about food is taking root. Namely, fake food. High-tech substitutes for farm-animal products – primarily eggs and meat – could be good for the environment, proponents say, because they require fewer natural resources than livestock agriculture. As well, they could result in lowered consumption of saturated fats. But are we ready for high-tech products that take Tofurkey to the next realm?
http://www.mnn.com/food/healthy-eating/stories/4-fake-food-products-drawing-venture-capital
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