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Feds Grab 163 Web Sites, Snatch $21.6 Million In NFL Counterfeit Gear

Posted by samzenpus on from the without-expressed-written-consent dept.

coondoggie writes: "As they have for the past few years the US Customs department teamed with the National Football League to cut into the lucrative counterfeit sports gear market. In what the feds called 'Operation Team Player,' special agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and officers from Customs and Border Protection worked with the National Football League (NFL) and other sports leagues along with law enforcement agencies to identify illegal shipments imported into the U.S., as well as stores and vendors selling counterfeit trademarked items."

8 of 133 comments (clear)

  1. For A Non-Profit, The NFL Sure Has A Lot Of Pull by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    title says it all

  2. It's all the same chinese shit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Probably made in the exact same factory by the same people.
    I love how they call it counterfeit, like it's somehow of lesser quality than the chinese shit they sell themselves.

  3. Priorities by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Because counterfeit football merchandise is such a "clear and present danger" that it rates diverting resources from, you know, actual crime like bank robbery and human trafficking. Maybe the NFL should be made to hire its own private security for this kind of stuff so public law enforcement can get back to protecting the public!

    1. Re:Priorities by sjames · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Probably because they only seem to do their job for things like this. Toxic pet food gets through just fine.

  4. Whew! by willoughby · · Score: 4, Funny

    I feel safer already!

  5. apropos nothing by Demonoid-Penguin · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Which country are the non-conterfeit items made in?

  6. Big sports fan and I've bought counterfeit stuff by GodfatherofSoul · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The jerseys (the good sewn ones) are simply way too expensive. They're upwards of $250-300 and taht's more than I'm spending on a player who might be with the team for 3-4 years. In fact, all the gear and items are obscenely inflated in price. However, the counterfeit stuff is hit or miss. I've got a Woodley jersey that looks like cartoon lettering was used for the player's name. Some items I'm sure are straight off the assembly line. Maybe they ran it another day and sold the extras on teh black market.

    The NFL can't be surprised this is happening. When Americans started to realized that goods were being produced at cutrate prices overseas and sold to us as a huge markup, lots of us gave the finger to tradition stores and elected to cut out the middle man as well. I'm probably being hypocritical based on my stand on illegal downloads, but I have no sympathy for Goodell's NFL.

    --
    I swear to God...I swear to God! That is NOT how you treat your human!
  7. Re:For A Non-Profit, The NFL Sure Has A Lot Of Pul by Tokolosh · · Score: 4, Informative

    There is a petition for that, with over 300,000 signatures. Go and add yours.

    http://www.change.org/petition...
    http://www.sacknfltaxbreaks.or...

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    Prove anything by multiplying Huge Number times Tiny Number