The Dept. of Homeland Security, along with local law enforcement, raided a flea market this past weekend near Lawrence, Mass., arresting 40 people for selling counterfeit goods.
Since when is DHS suppose to be raiding flea markets? Aren’t they suppose to be tracking down terrorists? Oh wait, that’s what the Muslim Brotherhood organization considers Americans to be.
LAWRENCE — Police, joined by agents from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, arrested 40 people for selling counterfeit items at two flea markets yesterday.
“This is an effort to support local, legitimate businesses who have complained of these individuals selling bogus merchandise,” Interim Lawrence Police Chief James Fitzpatrick said of the sweep last night.
“Over the course of several months, we targeted individual selling counterfeit goods and counterfeit intellectual property. Our investigation culminated with the arrests of over 40 people involved in selling these illicit items,” he said. “In recent history, I believe this is probably the largest raid in Massachusetts involving counterfeit goods.”
The raids began at about 11 a.m. yesterday and lasted through late afternoon. The raids took place at Don Flea Market at 85 Manchester St., and Lawrence Flea Market and Auction House at 468 N. Canal St, near the Falls Bridge, according to Fitzpatrick. The Police Department used several vans, some of them loaned by the Essex County Sheriff’s Department, to transport the defendants to the Lawrence Police Department, where they were being booked last night.
Fitzpatrick said he believed that most of those charged were from out of town.
“The Department of Homeland Security was the lead with Lawrence Police Department,” said Carrie Kimball-Monahan, spokeswoman for Essex County District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett’s office.
“We were part of the investigation and we will prosecute,” she said.
Police referred all comments on the raid to federal authorities. Calls to the U.S. Attorney’s office and Homeland Security were not returned.
Fitzpatrick said federal agents planned to wait until tomorrow before issuing a press release about yesterday’s raids.
“There’s a great deal of evidence that needs to be cataloged,” Fitzpatrick said of the items seized. Some of the counterfeit items sold were fake lines of clothing, he said.
This is a federal law enforcement priority? Glad to know they have the big problems covered. Maybe they should go after pirated VHS tapes next.
Because the largest flow of money to terrorist groups, other than drugs, is counterfeit goods.
It is absolutely critical for DHS to focus on blue jeans with a phony Levi patch on them because there is almost never a terrorist attack on U.S. soil, and the few we’ve had involved suspects who had intimate relations with the CIA and/or FBI. DHS is focused where most useful.
Profits from countrified goods goes to organized crime, many times funding terrorist activities.
lol right !!!!!
They have to do this, they’re not capable of closing the borders…. They can’t even control crosswalks in front of schools..
US Customs and Border Patrol are part of the Department of Homeland Security which is a cabinet level department do selling counterfiet goods falls under them
US Customs and Border Patrol are part of DHS whish is a Cabinet level department so they have jurstiction in this case
Here’s the expressed on-their-site mission statement for DHS
The Core Missions
There are five homeland security missions:
Prevent terrorism and enhancing security;
Secure and manage our borders;
Enforce and administer our immigration laws;
Safeguard and secure cyberspace;
Ensure resilience to disasters;
Doe this fit??…might be a stretch but where are the border securers ?????
Here’s the mission statement of DHS from their website: