Counterfeit footwear seized in Italy

Since 2009, the Italian Guardia di Finanza has targeted factories producing fake shoes.

A court in Naples has heard how 29 people were recently arrested for their involvement in the organised production and distribution of fake shoes around Italy. The investigation, called ‘Operation Speedy Shoes,’ began in 2009 and is run by the Guardia di Finanza – the law enforcement agency responsible for dealing with smuggling and financial crime. Since then, 17 illegal factories and 26 stock rooms have been raided, from which 159 footwear machines and almost 14,000 fake shoes, with an overall value of €5 million ($6.6 million), have been confiscated.

In one factory, the Guardia di Finanza is reported to have found 13 machines used to manufacture fake branded shoes. According to State Prosecutor Fausto Zuccarelli, an Italian company that produces genuine branded footwear is also involved in the crime.

According to estimates released by the Counterfeiting Intelligence Bureau of the International Chamber of Commerce, counterfeit goods make up 5-7 per cent of all products sold worldwide.

Publishing Data

This article was originally published on page 4 of the June 2012 issue of SATRA Bulletin.

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