C.B.P.News Release

C.B.P. and I.C.E. Donate $8.1 Million Worth of Shoes to Charity

(Thursday, February 19, 2009)

Los Angeles — U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement donated 254,240 pairs of shoes to Samaritan’s Feet and World Vision International, two non-profit charity organizations. The donations have an estimated domestic value of $8.1 million and a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $33 million.

All of the shoes arrived in containers at the Los Angeles and Long Beach seaports and were seized for bearing counterfeit trademarks. “These seizures are the result of federal officials working together to intercept shipments containing counterfeit items to prevent them from reaching the U.S. consumers,â€