Spain, backed by France, dismantles crime gang and big fake-perfume factory

Spanish law enforcement agencies backed by French customs agents have dismantled a criminal gang and seized what police said was the biggest fake-perfume factory in Europe, Catalan authorities said on Tuesday.

In a joint operation, the Catalan police and Spanish and French customs agents seized materials valued at more than 94 million euros ($111 million), the regional government said in a statement.

It said seven people had been arrested for belonging to a criminal organisation, smuggling and offences relating to patent violation, and two warehouses storing a total of 1.2 million bottles of counterfeit perfumes had been seized.

The regional government said the criminal organisation had generated scents to mimic the products of over 50 brands and stored raw materials to produce 150,000 litres of different fragrances, and transported large quantities of counterfeit perfume by road to other parts of Europe.

Authorities say the investigation is still open and that further arrests could be made.

($1 = 0.8460 euros)

-Paolo Laudani/Reuters