News Italy is traditionally a large watch market, currently fourth by value, and Italians are both passionate and well-informed about watches. Two characteristics to raise the spirits of Swiss manufacturers… but there are others. Counterfeiters are also very active in the peninsula, making the most of a pool of highly qualified jewellers and goldsmiths able to demonstrate undeniable expertise.
At the beginning of 2000, acting on a body of clues, the Guardia di Finanza set up an investigation called GoldenEye. In view of the size of the traffic revealed, the investigation quickly took on an international dimension and led in September to the dismantling of a wide network of counterfeiters active for a number of years and with ramifications throughout Europe.
The fake watches were made in Hong Kong (except for gold timepieces, produced in Italy), then imported into Switzerland or Austria by various import-export companies, before being redirected to Italy. Here, they underwent marking operations before being sold off in the retail trade through a network covering the entire territory. Flows of money were directed to the Chase Manhattan Bank, via the Banca di Lugano.
At the end of the operation, the Guardia di Finanza seized more than 40,000 articles imitating the most prestigious models from the Swiss watch industry, and at the same time destroyed three fully-equipped clandestine laboratories. Fifteen people were arrested and seven cars impounded. Through letters of request, police in Ticino were able to block credits deposited in Lugano. The 400,000 francs found during this operation give an indication of the size of the criminal organisation. Today the investigation is continuing and could lead to other "discoveries".
This is a textbook case illustrating, if need be, the necessity for collaboration by authorities across national borders, and the means to be deployed. Phone tapping, interception of electronic messages, analysis of financial flows, searches, shadowing, etc. When the fight against counterfeiting is treated like the fight against drugs, results are not long in coming. This represents a turning point in the authorities' perception of the offence of counterfeiting. We can justifiably be proud of ourselves.
November 22, 2001
