"Over 19,000 Items Caught at Customs for Mislabeling Origin in Public Institution Deliveries"

A company that falsified the country of origin to supply products to public institutions was caught in a customs crackdown.

On the 12th, the Incheon Regional Customs Office of the Korea Customs Service announced that it had sent company representatives Mr. A and Mr. B to the prosecution on charges of violating the Foreign Trade Act.

According to Incheon Customs, Mr. A and others are suspected of fraudulently supplying 7,304 fire lanterns (worth approximately 1.6 billion KRW) to public institutions.

Earlier this year, Incheon Customs focused on cracking down on violations of country of origin labeling for fire safety products such as fire lanterns, flow meters, and floor markers supplied to public institutions.

During the crackdown, a total of about 19,000 products (worth approximately 3.1 billion KRW), including fire lanterns supplied by Mr. A and others to public institutions, were found to have violated country of origin labeling regulations.

The seized products mainly consisted of 8,992 flow meters (worth approximately 1.2 billion KRW) and 2,259 floor markers (worth approximately 300 million KRW). The companies that supplied these products to public institutions were all referred to the Fair Trade Commission on charges of violating the Act on Labeling and Advertising.

Incheon Customs found that the companies caught in the crackdown had deliberately removed country of origin labels or falsely labeled the products as domestically made when supplying them to public institutions.

An official from Incheon Customs stated, “Falsely labeling the country of origin of low-priced imported products as domestic is a serious crime that stifles the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises and damages the K-brand and national image. Customs plans to strengthen on-site inspections to prevent such acts.”