Authorities seized 300 black market tickets during the course of Euro 2008.
From Reuters:
About 300 black market tickets had been confiscated from touts by Vienna police during Euro 2008, including 155 before last Sunday’s quarter-final between Spain and Italy, organisers UEFA said on Wednesday.
“I think it was the first time a large number of tickets were [...]
Custom Agents in Switzerland will soon be starting to crack down on tourists who are carrying counterfeit products.
From the VOA:
The head of legal services at the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property, Juerg Herren, tells VOA people should not think that buying fake goods is just a petty crime. He calls it a serious matter, [...]
Reuters reports on the rampant corruption in Russia.
From Reuters (via MSNBC):
Corrupt officials are raking off a sum equivalent to one third of Russia’s annual budget, or $120 billion, a senior prosecutor was quoted as saying Friday.
President Dmitry Medvedev has pledged to crack down on corruption, which he acknowledges is rampant. Economists say the problem threatens [...]
If you were planning on keeping your illegal contraband hidden from the authorities by keeping it in a safe deposit box, you’re not going to like this story coming out of London.
From the Times:
Thousands of safe deposit boxes used by the top tier of the criminal underworld were seized by police in an unprecedented raid [...]
Although Russian Authorities have lowered piracy rates in 2007, the trade in counterfeit and pirated goods are still a problem.
From the Moscow Times:
Fewer Russians now buy pirated computer software and cheap bootleg alcohol, but pirated goods on sale in the country still make several billions of dollars per year for counterfeiters, the Higher School of [...]
The anti-mafia book “Gomorra” made its film debut at the Cannes Film Festival this week.
From AFP:
The disturbing anti-mafia bestseller “Gomorra” that provoked death threats against its Italian author makes its debut in film form in Cannes on Sunday.
Roberto Saviano’s expose of the Naples-area Camorra mafia has sold more than a million copies since the book [...]
The European Commission released its 2007 figures on Counterfeit Seizures.
From Reuters:
In its annual report on customs operations, the executive European Commission said smugglers were opting to shift fake goods in smaller quantities instead of large dispatches in ship containers that were easier to intercept.
“The counterfeiters are taking fewer risks and sending smaller quantities per shipment, [...]
An increase in heroin trafficking into the United Kingdom is creating problems for law enforcement.
From The Times:
The agency leading Britain’s fight against organised crime is struggling to cope with the soaring scale of heroin trafficking, it admitted yesterday.
The Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca) claimed it was making headway in tackling fraud, gun-running and the cocaine [...]
The Dutch Cabinet is debating whether to distribute licenses to prostitutes in its famous red light district in order to limit human trafficking in the area.
From Reuters (via Yahoo News):
The Dutch cabinet said on Friday it wanted to crack down harder on the country’s sex industry, in particular unlicensed sex operators, as part of efforts [...]
France loses an estimated 6 Billion Euros ($7.8 billion) a year to counterfeiting.
Source: Reuters, “French firms target eBay in anti-counterfeit drive,” Boston Globe, August 18, 2006, and Union des Fabricants, “Damages and Penalties, (accessed: January 10, 2007).