Avant JO, combat contre contrefaçon à Saint-Ouen

Buzz Plus

Au marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen, une attraction touristique incontournable, on trouve une multitude de produits contrefaits. - L'info en continu  https://buzzplus.fr/ Infos, news & actualités - L'information internationale en direct.

Transcript

00:00 At the Opus market in Saint-Ouen, an essential tourist attraction,

00:04 you can find a multitude of counterfeit products.

00:07 A few months before the Paris Olympics,

00:09 authorities are trying to make the bags or clothes of counterfeit luxury

00:13 that are sold at incredibly low prices disappear from the shelves.

00:16 With more than 5 million visitors a year,

00:19 the antique and flea markets are the world rendezvous

00:22 of collectors, interior decorators and badeaux.

00:26 But for years, shops have been spilling counterfeit and flea merchandise

00:31 on the territory of the 1,400 antique shops spread over 9 hectares in the north of Paris.

00:36 Buying counterfeit has become an attraction.

00:39 "The tourist buys a T-shirt or a handbag thinking he's doing the right thing

00:44 and doesn't necessarily think it's illegal,"

00:46 explains Commissioner Claire Laclos.

00:49 Because counterfeit detention, like selling,

00:52 is a crime that can be sentenced to three years in prison and a fine of €300,000.

00:57 In Saint-Ouen, in Seine-Saint-Denis,

01:00 a territorial contact brigade, BTC,

01:03 is dedicated to the Opus in partnership with the municipal police.

01:07 Their "double mission" is a dissuasion work

01:10 with a strong occupation of the public road

01:13 and a work of detection of delinquency to protect visitors.

01:17 On the perimeter, there are vendors selling handbags,

01:20 thieves, unaccompanied minors

01:23 shot at the edge of the island, and anti-epileptic.

01:26 The "Biffin" market, or "Misery Market," is added,

01:30 located under the bridges between the 18th arrondissement of Paris and Saint-Ouen,

01:34 where foodstuff is traded for a few euros,

01:38 and stolen phones, according to the sign drawn by the police.

01:42 This explosive cocktail generates insecurity,

01:46 violence, and knife-countermeasures,

01:49 says the head of the BTCPUS

01:52 while he is on a routine tour with his team.

01:55 Under-sealed shops.

01:57 In the shops, the latest fashion items are available for sale,

02:01 such as a famous Canadian brand's 100-euro down jacket,

02:04 sometimes less than its real price,

02:07 or a high cap, displayed at 10 euros.

02:10 A good shot, says a policeman,

02:12 that "big shots from the province also come to buy

02:15 articles from China or Turkey."

02:18 With 5 to 6,000 euros of daily income

02:21 per 10 square meter of surface,

02:24 the case is as profitable as the stunning and less risky,

02:27 says a police officer.

02:29 Since January 2023, the police have seized more than 40,000 pieces

02:33 for more than 4 million euros in damages to the brands.

02:37 The police station's cellars overflow,

02:40 12 tons of counterfeit goods have been destroyed.

02:43 The Union des Fabricants, UNIFAB,

02:45 the French Anti-Counterfeit Association for the Protection

02:48 and Promotion of the Right to Intellectual Property,

02:51 is in charge of filing complaints in the name of the brands.

02:54 "We could empty a shop so much that the next day

02:57 it will be again full of goods," says Claire Laclos.

03:00 "We allow traffic to be contained but we do not eradicate it,"

03:03 adds the police officer.

03:05 To achieve this, there are in-depth investigations

03:08 to go back to the chain and identify the responsibilities

03:11 and owners of the goods.

03:13 Those behind the store's drawer are "straw men,"

03:17 not declared and paid a misery.

03:20 This long-term work is starting to bear fruit.

03:23 Nine shops have been placed under seal.

03:26 A dozen investigations are underway

03:29 and a first trial is due to take place in 2024.

03:32 Saint-Ouen is not acting to remove this image of capital

03:36 of counterfeit goods, but to eradicate it concretely.

03:39 And whether there is a GO or not.

03:42 It is an absolute priority, assures its mayor,

03:45 PS Karim Bouharrane.

03:47 But it is the Olympic Games in Paris,

03:50 between July 26 and August 11,

03:52 less than eight months after their expiration,

03:54 which gave a boost, assures a police source.

03:57 Many police reinforcements are already on the ground,

04:01 as during the Rugby World Cup.

04:03 British or South African tourists

04:06 had their bags full of counterfeit goods,

04:08 have seen the agents.

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