Hawks seize R59 million stash of counterfeit clothing in South Africa

The South African Police Service’s (SAPS’) Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, known as the Hawks, uncovered a shipping container containing nearly R59 million worth of counterfeit products.

These products were imitating well-known fashion brands, including Nike, Versace, and Gucci.

This was uncovered following a search and seizure operation conducted at a freight container depot in Durban, where authorities had identified a shipping container believed to be transporting counterfeit goods.

“During the operation, the Hawks uncovered an array of counterfeit products, with an estimated total value of R58,970,400,” said Hawks spokesperson Sibu Ncane.

“This included imitations of well-known fashion brands such as Nike, Ellesse, Hugo Boss, Fabiani, Puma, Lacoste, Diesel, Gucci, Adidas, Converse, Calvin Klein, Steve Madden, New Balance, Burberry, and Versace.”

Ncane added that the investigation is ongoing and that no arrests have been made as of yet.

The KwaZulu-Natal Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation Provincial Head, Major General Lesetja Senona, commended the team on their work.

He added that the operation “demonstrates the Hawks’ commitment to cracking down on the illicit trade in counterfeit goods.”

This comes just weeks after authorities dealt a R260 million blow to the illicit goods trade in South Africa when more than 100 shops were identified and targeted across the North West.

Police seized over 86,000 counterfeit items from stores in Coligny, Klerksdorp, Lichtenburg, Mahikeng, Potchefstroom, Rustenburg, Ventersdorp, and Zeerust.

These included designer-branded clothing, sports apparel, footwear, bags, caps, toys, and consumables. Police also confiscated counterfeit medicines valued at more than R45,000.

However, it isn’t only international brands that are falling victim to counterfeit products being sold, but also local manufacturers.

In February 2025, a shop assistant was found to be selling counterfeit MaXhosa Africa items for R80 in the Johannesburg CBD, while the originals start at R17,500.

Counterfeit trade in SA

The trade in counterfeit alcohol has also been identified as a major contributor to the illicit consumables market in the country.

On Saturday, a day after police raided the Durban container depot, members of the Hawks uncovered an operation manufacturing counterfeit Smirnoff products in Howick.

Several sophisticated machines were found on the premises used in the production of counterfeit Smirnoff 1818 bottles.

This included a bottle-blowing machine, a high-pressure air compressor, an evaporating temperature machine, an industrial chiller, and fine compressor air filters.

The illicit alcohol industry demonstrates the rapid growth of these unregulated products, growing from R6.4 billion in value in 2017 to R16.5 billion in 2024.

It has become so prevalent that roughly one in five bottles of alcohol is illicit. These are mostly either counterfeit or smuggled into South Africa.

Because they go unregulated, South Africa misses out on billions in tax revenue as a result.

According to a study commissioned by the South African unit of British American Tobacco (BAT South Africa) and conducted by Ipsos, the country loses approximately R28 billion annually from the trade in illicit cigarettes.

In April 2024, the SA Tobacco Transformation Alliance (SATTA) estimated that South Africans smoked 37 billion cigarettes in 2023, yet SARS only collected tax on 13 billion.

SATTA spokesperson Francois van der Merwe stated that the illicit cigarette market now accounts for between 65% and 70% of the total market, the highest in the world.

Data shared by SARS Commissioner Edward Kieswetter during a presentation on 22 October 2025 shows that actual collections began falling behind estimated collections when smoking was banned during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Since the 2020/21 financial year, when Health Minister Nskosana Dlamini Zuma banned the sale of cigarettes, the estimated collection of tax revenue for cigarettes far exceeds what SARS collects.