Millions of dollars in fake luxury watches were intercepted, right before Christmas holiday
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers in Louisville, Kentucky seized three shipments of counterfeit luxury Rolex watches on Dec. 5, 2025 and Dec. 8, 2025 along with Cartier watches, Moncler hats, and Chrome Hearts hats, and Audemars Piguet watches. Follow Charlotte Alerts on Instagram.
The counterfeit jewelry was arriving from Hong Kong and Taiwan. Had all these goods been genuine, the shipments would have had a combined MSRP of over $18.6 million.
The first two shipments arrived on Dec. 5 from Hong Kong, with one shipment heading to a residence on Staten Island, New York and the other shipment heading to Irving, Texas. Officers inspected the first parcel and discovered 400 Cartier watches, 26 Moncler hats, and 30 Chrome Hearts hats. Click here to see more counterfeit articles.
In the second parcel, officers found eight Cartier and 13 Audemars Piguet watches. On Dec. 8 officers inspected the parcel from Taiwan and discovered 80 Rolex Cosmograph watches and 80 Rolex Day Date watches. This package was headed to Houston. Even millions of dollars in counterfeit I-Phones were being shipped into USA transportation hubs.
The items were seized for bearing the protected trademarks of Cartier, Audemars Piguet, Moncler, Chrome Hearts, and Rolex. All of the items were deemed to be inauthentic by CBP’s Centers of Excellence and Expertise, the agency’s trade experts.
As the holiday shopping season continues, customs agents reminds consumers to purchase items from reputable retailers and be cautious of deals that seem too good to be true. Counterfeit goods not only harm the economy but can also compromise consumer safety.
In fiscal year 2025, CBP seized nearly 79 million counterfeit items with a combined MSRP value of over $7.3 billion, had these items been genuine. Counterfeit clothing, consumer electronics, toys, and medications were among the top seized items.
CBP has the authority to detain, seize, forfeit, and ultimately destroy imported merchandise if it bears an infringing trademark or copyright that has been registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office or the United States Copyright Office and has subsequently been recorded with CBP through the e-Recordation program.
