Seoul Cracks Down on Largest Secret Counterfeit Store... All "Mirror Grade" Goods Seized

The Seoul Metropolitan Government has uncovered the largest secret store in Dongdaemun selling counterfeit goods primarily to foreigners. The city authorities seized a total of 1,649 counterfeit items valued at approximately 7.2 billion won.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Civil Affairs Judicial Police Bureau (hereinafter referred to as the Civil Affairs Bureau) announced on April 20 that it had apprehended two individuals who had monopolized an entire floor of a building in Dongdaemun, one of Seoul’s major tourist destinations, and had been selling large quantities of counterfeit goods. The two suspects were handed over to the prosecution on April 16.

Counterfeit goods seized by the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Civil Judicial Police Bureau. Seoul Metropolitan Government

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The confiscated items consisted of 868 counterfeit bags, 653 counterfeit wallets, and 128 counterfeit watches, all bearing fake luxury brand labels. These were confirmed to be so-called “mirror grade” counterfeits, the highest quality tier among counterfeit goods.

The two suspects had occupied most of an entire floor in a major shopping mall building for ten years, operating a corporate-style store under strict security with foreign tourists as their main targets. They achieved high sales volumes through group purchases coordinated with tour guides. Inside the store, foreign luxury brand magazines were placed not just for display, but also used as covert codes and signals to discreetly gauge customers’ intentions to purchase or to identify one another.

In particular, to evade surveillance by law enforcement, the suspects installed over 10 CCTV cameras inside and outside the store and operated multiple secret storage rooms scattered throughout the premises, employing highly sophisticated tactics to prevent the exposure of all inventory during a crackdown.

The Civil Affairs Bureau conducted a persistent six-month investigation, including constant stakeouts, to catch these individuals who had established a secretive and thorough surveillance network. The operation involved multiple executions of search and seizure warrants as well as the deployment of digital forensic experts, demonstrating the city’s advanced investigative capabilities.

The suspects, who had already been convicted four times for violating the Trademark Act, meticulously monitored law enforcement activities and media reports in real time, strictly blocking sales to domestic customers. As a result, even brand rights holders (including representatives from Japan) were dispatched to the scene, and an intensive joint investigation was conducted. Additionally, digital records from seized mobile phones enabled authorities to identify not only the store’s internal storage areas but also residential locations where counterfeit goods were hidden, leading to the recovery of dispersed counterfeit items and evidence.

Distributing, selling, or storing counterfeit goods is a criminal act that causes significant damage to the property and credit of others. According to Article 230 of the Trademark Act, offenders can face up to seven years in prison or a fine of up to 100 million won.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government has called for active public reporting to eradicate the increasingly sophisticated and covert crimes of counterfeit goods sales. Those who contribute to the public interest by reporting criminal activities with decisive evidence may receive a reward of up to 200 million won under the “Ordinance on Protection and Support of Public Interest Whistleblowers of the Seoul Metropolitan Government.”

Byeon Kyung-ok, Director of the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Civil Affairs Judicial Police Bureau, emphasized, “Counterfeit goods crimes not only disrupt a healthy market order but also seriously undermine social trust in public authority. We will continue to strengthen our investigations and crack down on the distribution of counterfeit goods.”

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