Thousands of Fake Goods Seized in Benidorm and Altea

Ten people have been detained for crimes against intellectual property in joint actions carried out in Benidorm and Altea against sellers of fake branded goods.

In total, 4,268 units of clothing, footwear, accessories and jewellery have been seized, with a proposed market value of about 260,000 euro.

The investigation began after a number of complaints were received over fake goods being sold in stores and market stalls.

In Benidorm, those under investigation were from the same family and ran a number of different establishments, which resulted in five teams of officers being deployed to raid the premises simultaneously.

After initial analysis of the objects discovered, it was determined that the effects and logos of the original brand were made with low quality materials.

Inside the warehouses, the police found numerous bags and wallets, but this time without a brand, so the officers concluded that these pieces were set to have logos glued onto them manually, before being sold to the public, to appear authentic.

The Benidorm raids resulted in the investigation of four people, two men of 47 and 49 and two women of 36 years of age, and the recovery of 599 accessories and 505 items of jewellery representing various brands, whose market value can be in the region of 120,000 euro.

Meanwhile, in Altea, officers from the Guardia Civil established an operation aimed at combating the sale of possible counterfeit products in the weekly market. During the operation, they deployed a dozen agents, both in uniform and plain clothes, to prevent items being hidden before the intervention.

After reviewing six stalls, the officers observed that the fake branded clothes were camouflaged amongst other items. But after a more thorough examination, they seized a total of 3,164 units of clothing, footwear and accessories, which represent an estimated economic loss of 140,000 euro for the original brands.

The Altea investigators proceeded to charge six people from the market stalls, five men aged 33, 36, 39, 42 and 43, and a woman aged 31 as alleged perpetrators of crimes against intellectual property.