Fake Rado watches, cameras, sunglasses worth Rs 10cr seized at Delhi’s IGI airport

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence seized several fake Rado watches from a consignment from China at IGI airport. DRI officials are now trying to trace the receiver through consignment details.

They look like premium Rado watches at first glance, only they are not.

Close inspection of the watches revealed that they were fake. While the original Rado watches cost over a lakh, these were meant to be sold for Rs 4,000-5,000.(Picture: Sourced)

Several first copies of the high-end watches were seized by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence at cargo complex of Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA). The watches were part of a consignment coming from China. The consignment also carried huge quantity of cameras, sunglasses and mobile accessories worth Rs 10 crore.

Original Rado watches cost over a lakh and the copes seized by DRI were meant to be sold in the market for Rs 4,000-5,000. “Based on a specific input, we intercepted a consignment at the cargo complex. Though the sender had declared it as cosmetics and other daily use items, when opened, watches, shoes, pen drives, memory cards and other mobile accessories were found in huge quantities,” a DRI official said.

The seizure was made on Thursday, but the DRI is still counting the number of watches and evaluation is on. “Though it is a first copy, the demand is huge in Indian market. One watch can be sold from Rs 4,000 to Rs 10,000. There are different models,” the official added.

DRI is now trying to trace the smuggler who wrongly declared the content. The consignment had come from China and was to be received in Delhi. DRI is trying to trace the receiver through the details given in the consignment.

Officials said other items in the consignment, including shoes and sunglasses, seem to be original but DRI is taking help of the companies to check their originality.