Laredo, Texas — A shipment carrying nearly 79,000 counterfeit items worth more than $16 million was intercepted by federal agents at the Texas border.
The sale of counterfeit goods is a problem that has become all too common for Soccer Locker USA owner Rene Gallegos.
Making a living means barely making ends meet for Gallegos, whose business these last 10 years is selling the latest in soccer apparel.
“It’s harder when you have products in the streets that are called counterfeit or they’re not authentic,” he said.
Some pirated products can easily fool anyone with an untrained eye, said Gallegos.
“Ten to 15 visits each month of people comparing and complaining about counterfeit merchandise,” he noted.
It’s an issue authorities work around the clock to crack down on.
Homeland Security Investigations agents, along with Customs and Border Protection, made their second largest counterfeit seizure while working at the busiest inland port of entry in Laredo Thursday. All in all, 275 boxes containing electronics, cosmetics and apparel were seized; all made in China and headed to Mexico.
“These transnational criminal organizations are making money and even laundering money through these systems and it’s a danger to our financial systems in the U.S.,” said HIS Laredo Deputy Special Agent Tim Tubbs.
With this number of pirated items in circulation at stores and online, it’s no wonder business owners like Gallegos are feeling the pinch.
“It hurts all the people behind us, people that work on sales, work on design, they work on everything,” said Gallegos. “It hurts a lot of people and it hurts a lot of families as well.”