Hanyang Police Shut Down Print Shop Behind 110,000 Counterfeit Premium Tofu Packaging Bags

A Taiwan-funded manufacturer's premium tofu has been targeted by counterfeiters passing off inferior product, and the trail led to counterfeit packaging bags being printed in batches. Hanyang police disclosed yesterday that they had dismantled an illegal print shop and seized the fake packaging bags.

Reporters learned that the company filed a complaint with the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office at the same time it reported the matter to police. By the time the Taiwan Affairs Office's supervisory letter reached the Hanyang District Public Security Sub-bureau, the case had already been solved. A representative of the company credited the officers: "Wuhan police solved this with remarkable speed."

The premium tofu from this Taiwan-funded company is sold nationwide and priced by the box. After its anti-counterfeiting team spotted inferior counterfeit tofu on sale at several farmers' markets in Wuhan, the company wrote to the Taiwan Affairs Office to complain and filed a report with the economic crime investigation brigade of the Hanyang District Public Security Sub-bureau. Sub-bureau head Li Guohan took the case seriously and immediately assigned officers to form a dedicated task force. Brigade chief Tang Hongkun led officers on an undercover visit to the markets, where they learned that a small factory in Sunwan Village, Yongfeng Township, was producing these packaging bags.

Plainclothes officers then arrived at the village and found a small multi-story building, where several production lines on the ground floor were running off counterfeit packaging bags. The task force kept the site under close surveillance, waiting for the right moment to close the net.

Officers raided the plant and found the production run already complete, with large volumes of counterfeit packaging bags stacked in the packing workshop upstairs. A count put the haul at more than 110,000 pieces. Workers told the officers the batch was about to be loaded and shipped out.

The print shop's owner, surnamed Zhou, confessed that he had previously run a factory in Qiaokou and had moved to the remote village when business became difficult. The job had been introduced by a salesperson from another print shop, also surnamed Zhou. Processing fees came to just a few cents per plastic bag, with a separate wholesale price. "I knew that printing packaging bags without the manufacturer's authorization was illegal, but I took the risk to make some money," he said.

Officers then went to the Baibuting area of Jiang'an District and arrested the salesperson who had brought in the order. Both suspects are now under criminal detention, and the case is still under investigation.

Since Wuhan launched its campaign against counterfeit and shoddy goods this year, Hanyang police have been releasing results covering cases solved, hideouts shut down, suspects arrested and the value of counterfeit goods seized.

This article is reprinted from China Packaging Network (pack.cn). Original link: http://news.pack.cn/show-369975.html