Yesterday there were some tense moments at the Benque Viejo Free Zone after an attempt to impose a new charge on tobacco imports. Police had to call out the riot squad to calm down angry importers.
And while that was an internal matter between Zone management and importers - tonight, there's a bigger problem. 7News has confirmed that Customs at the border has held back two 40 foot containers bound for the zone.
The reason? Well, they're suspected to contain counterfeit NIKE products. But, it's only a suspicion, and Customs has to wait for the experts, who are the owners of the brand to come in and inspect the goods for themselves before they determine if they are indeed counterfeit. Trade in that level of counterfeit products is considered an intellectual property violation - which is monitored very closely by the United States.
We are told that so far, it's not clear which company was the importer - since there are many shell companies operating in the Zone.
Email
Print