GBA authorities bust smuggling group

A group smuggling counterfeit fashion items and electronics from Asia to North America has been busted by law enforcement authorities from the Greater Bay Area, the Hong Kong Customs and Excise Department has announced.
The joint operation was carried out by the customs teams from mainland China, Macau and Hong Kong.
During the operation, Hong Kong authorities discovered and confiscated more than 10,000 items, which have an estimated value of HKD1.5 million.
Items confiscated included mobile phones, clothing, shoes, and accessories such as leather belts, sunglasses, scarves, wallets, purses, and caps.
The operation lasted for three weeks, from April 20 to May 10. The trio of authorities intensified their daily operations to trace counterfeit products being smuggled from or through the three jurisdictions.
In Macau, the crime of violating intellectual property rights carries a maximum sentence of four years in prison. In Hong Kong, the maximum punishment for importing or exporting counterfeit products is a HKD500,000 fine and five years’ imprisonment.
In late January this year, just before the Lunar New Year holidays, Hong Kong Customs confiscated about 7,000 counterfeit products including red packets, toys and stationery items, which had an estimated value of about HKD170,000. AL