Building owners who rent out their properties to shops selling fake goods should also be fined, the Voortrekker Corridor Improvement District (VRCID) says.
This comes after scores of police confiscated millions of rands worth of counterfeit goods during a raid in Bellville’s CBD on Friday.
Derek Bock, CEO of the VRCID, says building owners cannot say they didn’t know about these offences and warns they will continue reporting these types of shops to the police.
“We ask that this becomes a regular occurance because the fake goods have a negative impact on our country’s economy and employment.”
A multidisciplinary team took part in the operation at the Bellville Station Shopping Centre in Durban Road, which was aimed at tackling the illicit trade in fake goods, Col Andre Traut, provincial spokesperson says. “At around 10:00 the multidisciplinary team executed a search warrant after a thorough investigation where intelligence was gathered over a period of time,” Traut says.
Four people were arrested on the day, which saw officials load truckloads of counterfeit goods, comprising an assortment of popular brands, as well as illicit tobacco products. They were then transported to a depot. Traut says a fair estimate of the value goes beyond R100 million.
“As our investigation unfolds, more arrests could be affected.” Western Cape police commissioner Lieut Gen Thembisile Patekile says those who are under the impression that they can make a lucrative living from selling inferior goods to the public and impacting on the economy of the county should reconsider, “because more similar operations will be executed not long from now”.
