RUC praised in counterfeit seizures

The European Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA) has applauded the efforts of the RUC in their efforts to stamp out counterfeiting and piracy in Northern Ireland.

The accolade follows the recent announcement that police officers from the province have carried out a total of 39 seizures in an eight-week period. These seizures have resulted in over 4,200 suspected counterfeit compact discs containing computer games software being recovered. It is estimated that the recovered goods have an equivalent retail value of over £86,000.

Of the 39 seizures, 19 were as a result of regular enforcement at the Nutts Corner open market in the Crumlin area of Belfast, and on these occasions the criminal stallholders ran off leaving the incriminating stock on display, which was then seized by police to be examined further and later destroyed.

The remaining 20 cases involved the police interviewing six females and 14 males from Larne, Portadown, Newtownabbey, Omagh, Ballykelly, Ballymena and Belfast.

All were caught attempting to sell what are believed to be counterfeit computer games at both the Nutts Corner and Eglinton Open Air Markets.

ELSPA is the computer games industry watchdog, which represents the interests of games publishers. It has a dedicated crime unit, which is made up of investigators across the country and often works with the Police and Trading Standards to combat computer games piracy. (MB)