"Branded" conveyor of fakes: ESBU exposed the manufacturing of clothing under the guise of original products

 Under the guise of products from well-known global brands, counterfeit clothing was mass-produced in Mykolaiv for further sale across Ukraine. Detectives from the Main Detectives Unit of the ESBU stopped the illegal activity, and they notified the organizer of the suspicion. The value of the seized products and equipment amounts to over 50 million UAH.

 The criminal proceedings were initiated based on statements from the trademark owners, who reported the illegal use of their designations.

The investigation established that the organizer set up a full cycle of illegal production and sale of counterfeit products. He rented warehouse premises in Mykolaiv, equipped production workshops in them, and installed nearly 130 units of special equipment. Clothing was manufactured with illegally applied logos of well-known brands.

The finished products were accumulated in warehouses, after which they were supplied in large batches to retail outlets in various regions of Ukraine. The counterfeit goods were sold wholesale and retail, in particular at the "7th kilometer" market in the Odesa region. Due to the underground production and the use of other companies' trademarks, the fakes were sold at prices significantly lower than the cost of the original goods.

During the initial investigative actions, detectives detected over 60 thousand units of counterfeit clothing prepared for sale. The examination confirmed that, as a result of the illegal use of trademarks, over 11 million UAH in damages were caused to their owners.

The organizer of the scheme was notified of suspicion under Part 3 of Article 229 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (illegal use of a sign for goods and services, trade name, and qualified indication of origin of goods, which caused material damage on an especially large scale).

During repeated searches in Mykolaiv and the Odesa region, over 360,000 units of counterfeit products were additionally seized. Among the seized items are sports footwear, underwear, headwear, and other textile products, in particular socks, with the trademark designations of "Reebok", "Nike", "New Balance", "Adidas", "Puma", "Salomon", "Gucci", "Versace", "Lacoste", "Armani", "Hugo Boss", "Levi's", "Columbia", "Tommy Hilfiger", "Off-White", "Calvin Klein", etc. Also, 28 units of equipment for the manufacturing of these products were detected.

The value of the seized products and equipment amounts to over 50 million UAH.

Currently, investigative actions are ongoing. The full circle of persons involved in the production, supply, and sale of counterfeit goods is being established.

Operational support is carried out by employees of the Department of Operational and Investigative Activity of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine. Procedural guidance – by prosecutors of the Office of the General Prosecutor.

According to Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is considered innocent of committing a crime and cannot be subjected to criminal punishment until their guilt is proven in accordance with the law and established by a court verdict.