May 2, 2008
U. S. Customs and Border Protection Seizes $1.3 Million Worth of Counterfeit Cigarettes

Los Angeles — U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers and import specialists seized a large quantity of counterfeit cigarettes with an estimated domestic value of more than $1.3 million.On April 24, CBP officers and import specialists at the Los Angeles seaport selected a container arriving from China for a physical inspection. Upon physical inspection of the shipment, CBP officers discovered the cigarettes hidden behind cartons of paper napkins. An inventory of the shipment revealed a total of 49,780 cartons of suspected counterfeit "Marlboro" and "Marlboro Lights" cigarettes.

Kevin W. Weeks, director of CBP Field Operations, Los Angeles, said, "Smuggling counterfeit cigarettes is illegal. Not only does it violate the trademark owner's intellectual property rights and defraud the United States of tax  revenues, counterfeit cigarettes are usually not properly labeled with the Surgeon General's warning and usually do not comply with federal ingredient reporting requirements for cigarettes."

Laboratory analysis by CBP scientists confirmed that the cigarettes were not manufactured by Philip Morris USA or any of its foreign affiliates or licensees. Philip Morris USA, the legitimate manufacturer of Marlboro brands, advised CBP that they had not authorized the importer or exporter to use their trademark.

The counterfeit cigarettes were seized and will be destroyed although they would have been worth over $2 million if they had been genuine. Importers who violate intellectual property rights laws may also be subject to civil penalties and/or criminal prosecution.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.
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Contacts for this press release:
CBP
Cristina Gamez OFO Office of Public Affairs Liaison Phone: (562) 980-3100 Fax: (562) 980-3107