Police raids in Milan and Turin on 14 October have dismantled a criminal network that was making and and selling fake versions of French grand cru wines, said the Europol law enforcement agency.
Counterfeiters were selling the fake grands crus for up to €15,000-a-bottle (£12,500), it said, without naming any specific wines or producers that were targeted.
Raids also took place in Paris, according to EU criminal justice body Eurojust, which added the counterfeiters were believed to have made more than €2m in profits.
Police raids on 14 houses in northern Italy led to ‘large quantities’ of wine being seized, as well as ‘wine stickers’ and wax products, said Europol.
In what appears to have been a relatively sophisticated counterfeiting operation, police also found ingredients to refill wine, machines to recap bottles, luxury goods and electronic equipment valued at €1.4m.
Some of the cash found during the raids. Photo credit: Europol.
More than €100,000 in cash was recovered, said Europol, which has been helping to coordinate an investigation into the criminal network since 2021.
It said six suspects were arrested following the house raids, including a ‘high value target’. Eurojust reported that seven suspects had been arrested in total.
It’s believed the fake grand cru wines were offered for sale in different locations, including those beyond Italy’s borders.
Counterfeits were produced in Italy and then transported to an undisclosed airport, before being exported for sale at market price, said the agency, which said the investigation was led by France’s Gendarmerie with help from the Italian Carabinieri and Swiss police agencies.
Police also found similarities between the counterfeiters’ tactics and those from a previous case that was closed in 2015.
Links included the source of capsules and label printers, said Europol, which also indicated that a Russian national was connected to both investigations.
From 2019 onwards, new counterfeits began showing up in Europe, particularly in Italy and Switzerland, said the agency, adding that its role in aiding the exchange of information between police forces helped the French gendarmerie unit in charge of the case to identify this new distribution route for fake grand cru wines.