If they had been true, there would have been 400,000 euros worth of counterfeit watches and bags.
A counterfeit seller and two of his customers were arrested on Monday July 25 in Chaville.
Around 3:30 p.m., a crew from the Bac de Sèvres noticed two men in a vehicle, rue de Jouy.
For the police, their attitude is bizarre, and they seem to be watching someone or something.
Another car arrives and parks nearby.
The duo joins the driver inside.
A few moments later, they get out of the cabin.
Entering empty-handed, they each come out with a package in hand and… are checked by the police who were waiting for them.
The boxes bear the Cartier logo and contain obviously counterfeit luxury glasses.
The two men aged 18 and 21 explain that they bought them from the third thief after setting up an appointment on Snapchat.
The police officers of the Bac in turn arrest the seller.
Surprise: several identical boxes are still waiting for a buyer in his car.
He is placed in police custody at the Sèvres police station.
A lengthy investigation
The searches will prove to be fruitful, to say the least.
Investigators search the vehicle in question, the dealer's home and his box.
In total, they recovered 440 pairs of counterfeit Cartier glasses and six equally fake Hermès bags.
Customs were logically notified of this discovery.
According to their counterfeit experts, the value of these goods, if they were authentic, would be around 400,000 euros.
Read alsoSale of counterfeits on the Internet: “We must not minimize the scale of these criminal networks”
The 20-year-old seller was released after a few hours in police custody.
The preliminary investigation is continuing and has been jointly entrusted to the Sèvres police station and the GIR, the interministerial research group.
Created in 2002, the GIRs (then the Regional Intervention Group) bring together police officers or gendarmes, customs officials, Urssaf, taxes… Their objective is to follow the money trail.
“The investigation promises to be long, predicts someone close to the case.
You will have to contact the brands in question, see if they are filing a complaint, assess the extent of the counterfeiting, establish where these products come from, etc.
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