According to Food Safety News, Spanish authorities have dismantled what is believed to be the largest criminal network for the production and illegal distribution of counterfeit whiskey, arresting 14 people between the ages of 37 and 52 in connection with the crime.
Photo courtesy of: Le Wine Guest
In that operation, Spanish police seized nearly 300,000 bottles of whisky imported from China, 171,200 counterfeit stamp duty stamps, 18,400 bottle caps and more than 27,000 cartons with the logo of the well-known whisky brand, with a total case value or more than 800,000 euros (about RMB 6,598,000 yuan) and damage caused to the whisky brand or worth 4 million euros (about RMB (32.988 million yuan.). .
It is known that the criminal gang has three main dens in Spain, located in La Rioja (La Rioja), Jaén (Jan) and Campo de Criptana (Campo de Criptana) in Spain, each in its own way when the gang counterfeits.
Ciudad Real is run by an Asian businessman who imports counterfeit stamps from Asia, as well as counterfeit bottles, labels and caps of a well-known whiskey brand, which are produced and bottled in La Rioja and then delivered to Ciudad Real for labeling and sealing in preparation for sale.
The name of the counterfeited whiskey brand cannot be made public at this time for legal reasons. However, it is known that the whisky counterfeiting ring is working with a legitimate beverage distribution company based in Rioja (Rioja).
The counterfeiting operation stems from an investigation called Operation Fuco, launched this summer by the Spanish Tax Administration and the Spanish National Guard, which found 9,550 liters of alcohol used to produce counterfeit products, 11,200 liters of whiskey ready to be bottled and 36,460 liters of whiskey already bottled.
