The Dubai Police recently confiscated more than 29,000 counterfeit watches with a market value of more than Dh1.2 billion ($327 million).

 

In an operation dubbed "60 Minutes", the Department of Combating Economic Crimes at the Dubai Police apprehended two men who ran the counterfeit business in the Naif area, located their hideouts and confiscated a large number of counterfeit items, a Wam news agency report said.

 

Addressing a press conference at the Dubai Police General HQ, Brig Al Jalaf praised the excellent coordination between government entities and private companies that contributed to the success of the operation.

 

He explained that the force had acted on a report about the illegal activity. "Upon receiving a tip from a reliable source over an illegal business promoting and selling counterfeit goods in the Naif area, our team started investigating the case to pinpoint the suspects and locate their whereabouts. Soon after, the Crime Analysis Centre at the Dubai Police identified two Asian suspects with criminal records and located two apartments where they stored the counterfeit goods," he said.

 

"Our teams then raided and inspected the apartments and seized 29,217 counterfeit branded watches with a market value of Dh1,239,240,450," Brig Al Jalaf added.