South Fulton police uncover $140M of counterfeit merchandise at storage facility

SOUTH FULTON, Ga. — A South Fulton police investigator says a pamphlet for a storage unit interdiction program led to the discovery of a massive haul of counterfeit goods.

“At this point, we suspect that the dollar amount has reached nearly $140 million in counterfeit items that has been seized here at this particular location,” said Chief Keith Meadows.

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Investigators uncovered the goods inside 21 storage units at a storage facility in the city of South Fulton.

“You’ve got purses, watches, handbags, belts from all the high-end manufacturers like Prada, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, except they’re not really? No, no they’re not. They look like it, but they’re not,” Corporal Jonathan Cornelius said.

Corp. Cornelius says he got a tip and staked out the storage facility for two weeks. He told Channel 2 investigative reporter Mark Winne that he frequently saw people walking in with boxes and out with green bags.

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South Fulton police are working with Homeland Security Investigations to the link the goods from the facility to vendors.

They have already connected the counterfeit goods to the discount mall at Westgate Shopping Center, but does not suspect the mall’s management of any wrongdoing.

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“A lot of people think that this is a victimless crime,” said Chief Meadows. “It certainly impacts our economy.”

So far, police have arrested three people in this investigation, but Cornelius says it is far from over.

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