Fake Super Bowl rings are apparently big business these days. What other reason is there to explain why someone would try to smuggling 422 of them into the United States?
Because that is exactly what happened earlier this month at an express consignment operations hub in St. Louis.
It was there that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers seized a shipment from China containing 422 fake Super Bowl rings.
The shipment was headed to a residence in Jerseyville, Illinois.
“An import specialist determined the rings were not authentic and that they bore an infringing trademark owned by NFL Properties that had been recorded with CBP for border enforcement through the e-Recordation program,” the CBP said in a statement. “If the items were genuine, the total manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) for this shipment would have been worth $300,000.”
While 422 fake Super Bowl rings sounds like a lot, it pales in comparison to some of the other seizures the CBP has made in recent years.
Earlier this year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized almost 1,400 fake championship rings and trophies with an estimated value of $982,263.
The CBP also seized 230 counterfeit championship rings in March worth over $345,000.
“Counterfeit jewelry continues to flood the e-commerce market, and these rings were focused on a select group of sports collectors and their fans,” said LaFonda D. Sutton-Burke, Director, Field Operations-Chicago. “Our officers are well-trained to find counterfeit merchandise like these in support of CBP’s mission of protecting the American public and the American economy.”
“This is just another example of the work our officers do to protect consumers and the U.S. economy,” said St. Louis’s Port Director. “As consumers increasingly purchase from online or third-party vendors, our officers are at the frontline to guard against defrauders expecting to make money selling fake merchandise.”
The CBP says U.S. consumers spend more than $100 billion every year on intellectual property rights infringing goods, falling victim to approximately 20% of the counterfeits that are illegally sold worldwide. Last year, CBP officers seized over 24.7 million counterfeit products.
Last November, the CBP seized three shipments containing 294 fake MLB and NHL championship rings worth $441,000.
One of the biggest busts of fake sports jewelry occurred in 2017 when Customs and Border Protection seized 177 pieces from MLB, NFL, NBA, and NCCA, including fake Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots Super Bowl rings, as well as faux New York Yankees’ World Series rings worth approximately $11.7 million.