Five arrested after 'hundreds' of fake football shirts were seized in Shrewsbury
Five people have been arrested and hundreds of fake football shirts have been seized from addresses in Shrewsbury during a national police crackdown on counterfeit goods.
As part of an operation by the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) at City of London Police, a total of 329 fake football kits and 184 pairs of fake football socks were also seized from addresses in Shrewsbury, Burton-on-Trent and Leek.
The raids took place in June and July, and led to five arrests.
In a statement, the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit said those arrested had received conditional cautions, ordering them to stop selling counterfeit goods and take down their online sales platforms.
The raids in Shrewsbury and Staffordshire formed a series of targeted operations across the country, which police say are a collaboration between PIPCU, the Intellectual Property Office (IPO), Border Force, Trading Standards and football clothing industry firms.
The operation has resulted in a total of 67,573 fake football shirts and kits being seized since January, which would have had a total retail value of £5.1 million.
IPO Deputy Director of Intelligence and Law Enforcement, Kate Caffery, said counterfeit football shirt trading was linked to organised crime, and destroyed "hundreds of jobs" every year.
"As fans rally behind their teams for the new Premier League season, criminal organisations are exploiting their passion by flooding the market with fake merchandise," she said.
"The manufacturing and distribution of counterfeit football kits is anything but a victimless crime – it channels money away from the game and directly into the pockets of serious crime.
"Counterfeit trading destroys tens of thousands of jobs annually and has a strong link to other serious criminal activities – from drug trafficking to human trafficking and modern slavery. By raising public awareness and helping supporters make informed choices, we can ensure that fans' loyalty truly benefits the sport they cherish and help combat this threat to our communities."
In related operations, Border Force agents seized 2,793 items of counterfeit football-related apparel at East Midlands airport during the UEFA Women’s Euros.
Detective Chief Inspector Emma Warbey, from the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) at City of London Police, said criminals would continue to bring counterfeit products to the market as the new football season approaches.
"Some consumers believe they’re buying genuine merchandise; some end up with a poor-quality product, and counterfeiting is thought to be the second largest source of criminal income worldwide, second only to illegal drugs," she said.
"An issue of this scale demands a coordinated response, and we’ll continue to work with our law enforcement, government and industry partners to crack down on this illegal trade and those who drive it."
