Counterfeit NFL items seized in Cincinnati area

Associated Press

CINCINNATI (AP) — Investigators have seized $1.5 million in counterfeit NFL merchandise at an air cargo facility in the Cincinnati area.

A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman says investigators with that agency and U.S. Custom and Border Protection seized the merchandise this past week at the DHL air cargo hub. The facility is at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport in Hebron, Ky.

Agency spokesman Khaalid (kah-LEED') Walls says the latest seizure is part of Operation Team Player that began in June. It is aimed at preventing the counterfeit goods from reaching the U.S. marketplace.

The latest seizure followed one announced last week in New York. Federal authorities said then that they had seized more than $21.6 million in knockoff souvenir football jerseys, caps and other merchandise leading up to the Super Bowl.