CBP, Partners Seize More than $18 million in Fake Gibson Guitars in Largest Counterfeit Musical Instrument Seizure on Re

[douglas9]

LOS ANGELES— U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Officers and Import Specialists assigned to the LA/Long Beach Seaport, in conjunction with U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agents, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) Investigators, and Gibson representatives, announced the seizure of over 3,000 counterfeit Gibson guitars with a manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP), had they been genuine, of $18,742,820 (USD

CBP officers in coordination with HSI special agents and LASD investigators intercepted the suspected cargo arriving in ocean containers from Asia. CBP’s Consumer Products and Mass Merchandising Center of Excellence (CPMM) assisted in estimating the MSRP of the shipment. Gibson confirmed that the guitars intercepted were in fact counterfeit, nothing than authentic Gibson guitars are made in the U.S.A. only.

“These fraudulent guitars may look and feel legitimate for unsuspecting consumers buying them from third party online sources, street markets, unauthorized retailers, and person-to-person transactions,” said Cheryl M. Davies, CBP Director of Field Operations in Los Angeles. “As we approach the busy Holiday shopping season, consumers should pay attention on where they are buying these goods and how much they are paying, and if is too good to be true it probably is.”

https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/cbp-partners-seize-more-18-million-fake-gibson-guitars-largest

[ProfessorGAC]

1. Hmmmm

I'm not a Gibson guy, but I admit to wondering whether these knock-offs are worth having.
The Les Paul models I look at are $6,000-6,900. I wonder what the counterfeits were going for. The article doesn't say.
If these things were actually being sold as if they were real, that's a pretty huge fraud.
If they were going for $500, nobody was being defrauded because everyone knows you can't get a real Gibson for that kind of money.
I fear it's the former.

[douglas9]

4. U.S. Border Agents Seize 3,000 Fake Gibson Guitars

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/27/us/fake-gibson-guitars-seized.html

[tanyev]

2. Did they have Make America Great Again on the guitar neck?

[2naSalit]

3. Oops!

Is that the supplier for pendejo guitars that were legally opposed by Gibson?

This could get a lot bigger.