Counterfeits to the Gulf Coast
Victims of Hurricane Katrina are receiving 100,000 pieces of clothing from the U.S. government— the spoils of counterfeit busts and over-quota seizures. The offices of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Los Angeles, New York and Miami have sent counterfeit denim, footwear and other apparel items that normally would have been destroyed to Gulf Coast victims. Separately, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection has sent several truckloads of clothing valued at more than $2 million to victims in Houston’s Astrodome, which is serving as a temporary shelter. The clothing was confiscated from companies violating import quotas. These items also would have been destroyed.
