Police raid business selling counterfeit designer items

ATLANTA — Investigators say they confiscated more than a million dollars in phony items during a two-day operation.

Investigators showed Channel 2’s Amy Napier Viteri how the suspects were tricking their customers.

Channel 2 was the only news station there when police raided two businesses inside the West End market.

They confiscated a truck full of fake items. Police say the suspects were using a simple machine to put fake luxury labels on cheaper bags.

Bags full of counterfeit merchandise was loaded onto a U-haul truck. Channel 2 saw investigators confiscate everything from phony luxury bags, Nike Air Jordan’s to high-end jeans.

Lt. Jeff Cantin said, “Over the past couple of days, we’ve hit seven businesses in the southwest side of Atlanta looking for counterfeit materials.

One suspect police took into custody for the forged items was Samba Ba. They also arrested four other people.

Cantin said police targeted two businesses and found fake Uggs, Nikes, bags and clothing. Channel 2 witnessed police remove so much merchandise, they needed a second truck.

“They don’t have the emblems like Michael Kors or other big name brands on them,” Cantin said.

Police say the suspects used a machine they found inside a discount mall to press fake brand name labels onto generic cheaper bags. Police say they then sell the bags at slightly discounted prices often for hundreds of dollars.

Cantin said they also search for real items that may have been stolen in previous crimes, like smash and grabs at retail stores.

“People go in and grab handfuls of clothing and run out,” Cantin said.

Police said they also look for other crimes when doing these raids and they told Channel 2 they recovered drugs at one of the locations.

WSBTV