COUNTERFEIT clothes seized in the North-East are to keep needy people in Romania warm.
Hundreds of sweatshirts, fleece jackets and woolly hats, worth £10,000, are to be taken to the poverty-stricken country by the Metropolitan Police Aid Convoy - with their fake designer labels removed.
Jeff Bell, chief trading standards officer with Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council, said: "We have made extensive checks to establish the products could not be sold anywhere in Europe or North America without breaching copyright laws."
The imitation designer wear was seized during routine operations on Teesside by the council's trading standards officers.
Mr Bell said: "We have arranged for all the labelling to be erased before transportation to Romania, where they will be distributed as humanitarian aid.''
"Aid Convoy has established a track record of ensuring that products given in good faith actually reach those in need and don't reappear on the black market.
"A small amount of humanitarian aid can go a long way so I am very pleased to report this success by our officers."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article