Last updated November 21, 2010 11:19 p.m. PT
Who knew the cleaning supplies game could be such a dirty business?
Customs officials in Seattle have launched an investigation related to the purported importation of thousands of boxes of counterfeit laundry detergent, according to filings made to the U.S. District Court by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent.
Applying for a search warrant for a SeaTac residence, the agent asserted several Seattle-area men have been importing Chinese-made laundry detergent by the cargo container.
One container seized earlier this year in Seattle was found to contain 52,080 bags of laundry detergent marked as though they were Tide or Ariel-brand products, the agent noted.
The move followed raids late last year in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, the agent continued.
Following on a March 2009 seizure at Newark, N.J., customs officers in Philadelphia seized a container packed with 53,556 bags of counterfeit Ariel detergent. Labels purported the products were made in Mexico when, in fact, they'd been imported from China.
Days after that October 2009 search, officers seized another shipment of detergent at the port, the ICE agent told the court. That time, though, 1,237 fake Gucci or Louis Vuitton belts were found mingled with the detergent.
Officers in Seattle seized a shipment on Sept. 14 after inspectors noted that the manufacturer listed on shipping documents was a Chinese firm known to produce counterfeit detergent.
Agents seized 5,000 boxes of detergent marked Tide and purportedly produced in the United States, the ICE agent told the court. A second shipment of 52,080 bags of Ariel detergent labeled in Spanish was intercepted two weeks later.
The agent claimed those shipments, as well as two others, had been brought into the country on behalf of a SeaTac janitor who'd previously imported items from China for sale in Africa. Writing the court, the agent suggested the man may be importing the detergent for another party.
Agents searched the SeaTac man's apartment on Nov. 5, seizing documents before releasing the home. Court records do not show any current charges against the man.
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