Tampa, Florida - U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers in Tampa seized over 860 counterfeit Ray-Ban sunglasses arriving in a shipment from China on July 13. Had the goods been genuine, the Ray-Ban sunglasses would have an estimated Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of $123,455.

CBP’s highly trained officers successfully targeted and intercepted the U.S.-bound air cargo. The description for the freight was also concealed under a different commodity.

Initially, CBP officers suspected the sunglasses to be counterfeit since they did not appear to be of the quality consistent with the products normally manufactured by the trademark holder. CBP import specialists examined samples and determined the items to be counterfeit.

This high value seizure is one of many successes marking CBP’s longstanding commitment to combating importation of illicit merchandise bearing counterfeit trademarks in Tampa.

Recent interdictions included seizures from Intellectual Property violations of electronics, watches/jewelry, shirts, handbags and many other products.

“Intellectual property rights are invaluable to innovation, investment and economic development,” said Acting Tampa Area Port Director Paula Rivera. “Our CBP officers and import specialists are committed to preventing counterfeit goods from entering the commerce of the United States.”

CBP protects businesses and consumers every day through an aggressive Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) enforcement program. CBP targets and seizes imports of counterfeit and pirated goods, and enforces exclusion orders on patent-infringing and other IPR violative goods. Detailed information about recording IPR and reporting intellectual property infringement to CBP can be found on the CBP website.

On a typical day in Fiscal Year 2014, CBP officers around the country seized counterfeit goods totaling more than $3.4 million. In Fiscal Year 2014, CBP made more than 23,000 seizures of counterfeit goods worth an estimated $1.2 billion.