A Rolex watch. Photo by Pexels
A customs department anti-smuggling task force seized 450 fake Rolex watches during an inspection Tuesday at Tra Linh in Cao Bang Province on the Chinese border.
The watches were found in a container transported from China supposedly containing 24 tons of consumer goods, according to the customs declaration, official government newspaper VGP reported.
The inspecting officers also found numerous other undeclared items like cosmetics, lighters, power banks, bras, and car lights.
The business responsible for the container was unable to provide the inspectors with documents proving legal ownership of the watches.
According to a representative of the Rolex brand, the counterfeits, if genuine, would be worth around VND45 billion (US$1.7 million). The case is under further investigation.
This is the fifth such case at the border gate in the first half of June, with officials seizing over 5,700 fake items of clothing, handbags and sports shoes carrying brand names such as Tommy Hilfiger, Celine, Nike, Louis Vuitton, Lacoste, Adidas, and New Balance, according to Tuoi Tre newspaper.
They also found a large number of undeclared merchandise falsely labeled as made in Vietnam.
Market authorities across the country have been cracking down on smuggling, commercial fraud and fake goods for the last month.
Since May 15 they have uncovered over 3,100 cases of violations and imposed fines of over VND32 billion.
Counterfeit goods and intellectual property violations accounted for 52%, or 1,580, of the cases, and the offenders were fined VND16 billion.
Smuggling followed with 648 cases and more than VND6 billion in fines.
