$20M and Counting: Feds Tackle Counterfeit Goods Ahead of Super Bowl

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The feds have already set a Super Bowl record — by seizing some $20 million worth of phony gear smuggled in from all over the world as Sunday’s game approaches.

Fake tickets good enough to gain entry to MetLife Stadium, knock-off jerseys and even sex workers descending on the biggest event in American sports are all on the radar of the Department of Homeland Security. The agency has set up a 24-hour operation at JFK airport, where they are confiscating loads of unlicensed Super Bowl paraphernalia in advance of Sunday’s game, FoxNews.com has learned.

“We have seized upwards of $20 million worth of counterfeit merchandise, most of which is related to the Super Bowl,” said Special Agent in Charge James T. Hayes of Homeland Security in New York. “We’ve executed 11 arrests so far and expect to make more in the coming days.”

Hayes said investigators have confiscated “thousands of pieces” of illegal merchandise, sent mostly from Asian countries like China. The fraudulent items include hats, jerseys and T-shirts made to look like they are officially endorsed by the National Football League for this year’s Super Bowl game between the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos as MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

“If it’s produced, it’s being counterfeited,” Hayes said. “This is the perfect environment for counterfeiters because of street vendors,” he said of New York City and areas surrounding the northern New Jersey stadium.