– The agents seized 279 items of clothing which were on display to the public in an establishment dedicated to the sale of souvenirs in the municipality of Roquetas.
– The counterfeit garments reproduced the signatures and logos of well-known commercial brands. The perpetrator has been investigated for the commission of an offence against industrial property.
The Civil Guard in Almeria, in a recent operation completed on Monday 20th, investigated a 42 year old man as the perpetrator of a crime against industrial property and seized 279 counterfeit garments (T-shirts, polo shirts, caps, bags…) with the logo and signatures of registered trademarks. The investigated person had the garments hanging on displays and ready for sale to the public in a shop in the municipality of Roquetas de Mar (Almería). He also had a warehouse annexed to the premises where he kept part of the material, which has also been seized.
This action is part of the Guardia Civil’s investigations into the prevention of the manufacture, distribution and marketing of clothing without the knowledge of the holders of industrial property rights registered under trademark legislation in the province of Almeria.
With this operation, the Guardia Civil has prevented the illegal introduction into the legal market of counterfeit garments of well-known registered textile brands, lacking the corresponding import documentation and the security and quality measures required in this respect.
In one of the controls carried out in public establishments in different municipalities in Almería, the agents discovered that counterfeit garments were being sold in a shop dedicated to the sale of souvenirs, textile accessories and other types of products in the Almería municipality of Roquetas de Mar.
The agents set up a surveillance operation which revealed the large number of customers who were buying, among other items in the shop, the allegedly counterfeit garments, which were displayed for sale to the public in the displays along with other textile garments.
When the Guardia Civil agents began checking and accrediting the goods, the garments did not comply with the legal requirements established for their circulation, possession and legal trade.
All the seized goods lacked product invoicing and labelling, their retail price was lower than the original price, as well as being of poor quality and lacking packaging or wrapping with the logo or registered trademark.
As a result of the action, the agents proceeded to seize 279 garments of leading brands and charged the person responsible as an investigated person with an offence against industrial property by allegedly selling counterfeit clothing with the logo of registered brands.
The proceedings, the seized goods and the perpetrator have been placed at the disposal of the Court in Roquetas de Mar.
The investigation is still open in order to find out the origin of the seized goods and the possible involvement of other people in the facts.