Law enforcement officials in central Vietnam have apprehended five individuals suspected of involvement in a scheme to falsely label car windshields obtained from a Chinese manufacturer as products of various luxury automobile brands including Toyota, Mercedes, Kia, Ford, Hyundai, and Mazda.
The suspects, identified as Tran Quoc Loi (46), Dang Van Minh Hieu (18), Le Minh Tung (30), Le Thi Nga (30), and Ho Van Loi (28), are currently under investigation for alleged “trading counterfeit products,” according to a statement released by Thua Thien-Hue Province police on Thursday.
Additionally, Trinh Thi Kim Nhu (36) has been placed under a restriction preventing her from leaving her hometown in Huong Thuy Town, within the province, to facilitate further investigation.
Authorities have designated Tran Quoc Loi as the alleged mastermind behind the operation.
During interrogation, Loi confessed to purchasing a significant quantity of car windshields from Xinyi Automobile Glass (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd., based in China. Subsequently, he admitted to removing the original logos and affixing counterfeit labels representing brands such as Toyota and Mercedes before selling them on the market at marked-up prices, ranging between 300-500% higher than the original prices.
The exact commencement date of the illicit business remains unclear; however, investigators determined that between April and November of the preceding year, the group imported approximately 5,000 windshields from Shenzhen in three separate transactions.
The illicit activities came to the attention of authorities following an inspection conducted by market regulators at a store specializing in automotive components located on Nguyen Tat Thanh Street in Hue, where the counterfeit products were discovered.
Catch the latest in supply chain news on The Supply Chain Report. Visit ADAMftd.com for free international trade tools.
#CounterfeitProducts #AutomotiveFraud #VietnamPolice #LuxuryBrands #CarWindshields #XinyiAutomobileGlass #LawEnforcement #ConsumerProtection #FraudPrevention #ThuaThienHue
