Operation Team Player results press conference, Super Bowl 51: transcript

Key points

• The NFL said it obtained a civil court order for the 35th consecutive year to seize counterfeit merchandise and tickets in Houston and Harris County during Super Bowl week.
• The NFL described security features of authentic tickets, including a polymer graphic, a color security label on the back and thermochromic ink, and urged fans to buy only from reliable sources.
• A Houston police captain said local investigations led to five arrests, about eight businesses disrupted and roughly half a million dollars in seized merchandise.
• The Harris County constable said enforcement teams, including undercover officers, would arrest sellers and seize items across the city.

Chapters

1. 2:26Introductions and order of speakers
2. 4:06NFL on counterfeit merchandise and civil enforcement
3. 8:48Counterfeit Super Bowl tickets and security features
4. 10:34HSI Houston on Operation Team Player results
5. 14:56Customs and Border Protection on counterfeit seizures
6. 17:59Houston police results and local enforcement
7. 19:02Harris County constable's warning and closing

Full transcript

0:01Secondary? Thank you very much.

0:41Yeah. Thank you. Thank you.

2:26Good morning. My name is Jen Elsie. I'm the acting press secretary for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Thanks for joining us this morning. This is your three-minute warning. I'm doing it a little bit early because I want to read the names of our speakers for you and give a quick flow of show. Kicking it off. A little pun there, will be Dolores DiBella, last name spelled D-I-B-E-L-L-A, of the NFL. She's the Vice President of Legal Affairs. She will turn it over to Michael Buchwald, last name spelled B like Bravo, U-C-H-W-A-L-D. He's Senior Counsel for the NFL.

3:05They will turn it over then to Mark Dawson, he's the Special Agent in Charge for US Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations, Houston. Then we will have Eric Schoberg, Acting Director of Field Operations for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Houston. He will turn it over to Captain Dwayne Reddy, R-E-A-D-Y, Captain Dwayne Reddy, of the Houston Police Department, and then finally they'll turn it over to Allen, A-L-A-N Rosen, R-O-S-E-N, Constable of Precinct 1 here in the Houston area. They will each give brief remarks, and then in lieu of question and answer at the end, we will have the principals available for interviews at the back of the room, so if you're interested in a one-on-one, reach out. There will be a rep with each of the principals to help

4:06handle any one-on-ones. So we'll get started in just a couple minutes. And we have paper copies of the news release. If you don't have one, let me know and I can get one for you. Thanks so much. Hello. Good morning, and welcome to Super Bowl 51 here in Houston. I'm Dolores DiBello from the National Football League. Today, we are pleased to share with you several important developments in the NFL's efforts to fight criminal enterprises that are preying on NFL fans and their enthusiasm for the game by trafficking in counterfeit merchandise and tickets, including the counterfeit NFL merchandise that you see here below the stage.

6:28We are fortunate to again have the support of both federal and state law enforcement agencies here in Harris County and in fact across the country. Joining us today to speak about Operation Team Player, a nationwide law enforcement effort to disrupt the sale of counterfeit sports merchandise and tickets is Mark Dawson, Special Agent in Charge for Homeland Security Investigations in Houston, and Eric Schoberg, Acting Director of Field Operations for Customs and Border Protection Houston.

6:59We are also proud to recognize the significant enforcement efforts undertaken by those here on the stage and their respective departments and agencies. Captain Dwayne Reddy of the Houston Police Department and Constable Allen Rosen from Harris County. Our message to NFL fans today is simple. Watch out for criminals who are looking to scam consumers and illegally profit off the popularity of the NFL, your home team, and the Super Bowl. Don't put yourself at risk. Buy authentic merchandise from established retailers and online shops. Beware of phony peddlers, websites, and marketplace listings that are offering counterfeit merchandise for sale and put your financial information in the wrong hands.

7:42Counterfeiting crimes don't only prey on the fans, but also hurt the local businesses, the legitimate resellers, and the licensees who support the local economy and play by the rules. Over the last several decades, and of course leading up to this Super Bowl 51, the NFL has worked to give its fans an authentic NFL experience and protect them from the sale of counterfeit merchandise through civil enforcement efforts and through close collaboration with law enforcement, including the agencies here on the stage.

8:12We are pleased to report that for the 35th consecutive year, the NFL has obtained a civil court order to assist in the immediate seizure of counterfeit NFL merchandise and counterfeit tickets discovered in Houston and the surrounding areas of Harris County during the Super Bowl week. My colleague Mike Buchwald is going to talk about counterfeit Super Bowl tickets. Thanks, Dolores. With the enthusiasm and excitement building this week ahead of Sunday's game, we also want to warn fans to be careful of con artists peddling counterfeit Super Bowl tickets.

8:48Every year we see fans who arrive at the stadium on game day only to be turned away at the gate having bought counterfeit tickets. The quality of counterfeit tickets can be quite sophisticated, but no matter how real Even though the tickets may look, a fake ticket will not get you into the game on Sunday. That's why we strongly discourage fans from buying tickets from any suspicious sources. Even if a ticket looks real, it could have been reported lost or stolen, which means the person holding it may not be granted entry into the stadium.

9:22The only way to ensure that you are buying the real thing is to buy tickets from reliable sources like the NFL Ticket Exchange, on location, or established ticket retailers. In order to cartel criminals' ability to create fake tickets, the NFL has implemented a number of special security features in every authentic Super Bowl ticket. As you can see, the front of the ticket includes a full polymer graphic with a raised appearance that you can feel.

10:02Importantly though, on the back of each ticket is a true color security label. This year with the skyline of downtown Houston, the LI Roman numerals, and the Super Bowl logo. Thermochromic ink is used on the graphic on the lower part of the ticket. The HTX logo and the NRG Stadium image will fade when heat is applied and will return when the heat source is removed.

10:34So now we'd like to invite Mark Dawson, special agent in charge of HSI Houston, to tell us about his agency's work in Operation Team Player. Good morning. My name is Mark Dawson, and I'm the special agent in charge for Homeland Security Investigations here in Houston, Texas. First of all, I want to thank Ms. Tabella and all of you for being here this morning. It's been an exciting few weeks here in Houston as we've opened our doors to football fans from around the world for Super Bowl 51.

11:09and with kickoff less than 72 hours away, I wanted to take this opportunity to share with you the results of an ongoing HSI-led operation known as Team Player. Team Player began six years ago and continues to target international shipments of counterfeit merchandise as they enter the United States. The operation is run out of the HSI's-led National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center. The IPR Center stands at the forefront of our government's response to the global intellectual property theft.

11:46Throughout the year, authorities identified warehouses, stores, flea markets, online vendors and street vendors selling counterfeit game-related sportswear and tickets. Throughout the country, including many of the items we have on display here today. Fake jerseys, ball caps, t-shirts, jackets, and other souvenirs are among the counterfeit merchandise and clothing confiscated by teams of HSI special agents working in partnership with Customs and Border Protection, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and our state and local partners from around the world, from around the country, I'm sorry.

12:28in partnership with sports leagues and teams, and of course this week in partnership with the NFL. Throughout the year, we seized more than 260,000 counterfeit sports-related items worth approximately $20 million, and this included 56 criminal arrests and 50 convictions. Make no mistake, the theft of intellectual property rights is not a victimless crime. We've seen instances where the illicit proceeds resulting from the sale of counterfeit products are funneled back to support a broad range of other crimes, including human trafficking, forced child labor, and even drug smuggling to name a few.

13:14More and more, we are finding that individuals engaging in this illicit activity have moved into IP theft from other crimes, some with histories of gang affiliations or violent crimes. The illegal manufacture and sale of counterfeit goods represents predatory trade practices that endanger public health, our economy, and restrict the competitiveness of the US products in the global market. And while today we are highlighting our effort related to sporting goods, this is only the tip of the iceberg when looking at counterfeit goods. Here in Houston alone this past year HSI along with our federal and local partners have conducted investigations involving counterfeit hoverboards, electronic goods, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, pesticides, sides, auto parts, water filters, and makeup.

14:16Special agents from HSI and officers with U.S. Customs and Border Protection again worked with the NFL and law enforcement agencies throughout the nation to identify illegal shipments imported into the U.S. as well as stores and vendors selling counterfeit trademarked items. Fans that spend their hard-earned money to support the NFL and their favorite teams can rest assured that HSI and its partners are working around the clock to ensure that they are getting only genuine, high-quality, officially-licensed merchandise in return. Operation Team Player will continue throughout this weekend and throughout the year. Thank you.

14:56Good morning, I'm Eric Schoberg, Customs and Border Protection's Acting Director of Field Operations here in Houston. Intellectual property rights is a CBP priority trade issue, which means it's a high-risk area that can cause significant revenue loss, harm the U.S. economy, or threaten the health and safety of the American public.

15:27CBP officers and import specialists, in collaboration with our ICE counterparts, take every opportunity to disrupt the flow of counterfeit goods. IPR thieves have been known to use the profits of the sale of these fake products to fund other transnational criminal activities. CBP has a strategic approach for our IPR efforts. First, it is to educate and engage our stakeholders. This is to deter importations of IPR-violetive products. Second, we employ innovative approaches to enforce IPR laws at our ports of entry.

16:08To give you some statistics, last fiscal year, fiscal year 2016, CBP seized 31,560 shipments of IPR-valued products. This is a 9% increase from the previous year. To put a dollar value on that, these 31,000 plus shipments were worth $1.38 billion. This is a 2% increase from the previous year. In addition to the criminal component, many counterfeit products such as fake pharmaceuticals and electronics can be harmful to the health and safety of American public.

16:47An example of this were the hoverboards that we've seized over the past year. These hoverboards contained counterfeit lithium-ion batteries that were known to catch fire. At every major sporting event, counterfeiters take advantage of fan fever to sell a range of products with trademark and names of teams, though they are not licensed to produce or sell these products. Interrupting these activities denies criminal organizations millions in profits.

17:18And it is an effort CBP and our law enforcement counterparts will continue to pursue to protect the domestic industry, the health and welfare of the American public, and our nation's economy. As my ICE counterpart mentioned, CBP partnered in Operation Team Player where we examined many shipments which identified counterfeit products and some of these are shown here down below. We are able to perform this mission because of an untiring workforce who closely examine imported goods and assist in bringing enforcement efforts against those conducting and contributing to intellectual property theft.

17:59Counterfeiting and pirating trademark products is not a victimless crime. It erodes trademark holders' return on their investment, which affects their workforce. their employees become victims through job and wage loss. While CBP and our law enforcement counterparts continue to make seizures and arrests, consumers can play a role by refusing to purchase knockoff products. Thank you very much. Good morning, everybody. My name is Dwayne Reddy. I'm a captain over the Major Offenders Division in the Houston Police Department. And let me just speak specifically to the local level as it applies with the NFL Nexus. I can tell you that the detectives here have conducted several successful investigations, arresting five people and charging them, detaining even more than that, disrupting about eight different businesses, and have, I think, roughly a little over half a million dollars in

19:02seized merchandise. I won't talk about any particulars of the ongoing investigations other than to say this, if you're out there and you're engaged in that activity, we'll find you, we'll arrest you, we'll charge you, and we'll seize all the merchandise. Thank you. Good morning. I'm Constable Allen Rose in Harris County Precinct 1 and as you can see we're taking this issue very seriously. So the message is clear. The Precinct 1 Constable's office got involved to assist the NFL in getting the temporary restraining order and the temporary injunctions to enforce these actions.

19:37We have our writ of execution group that's going to go out that has an embedded NFL brand expert that's going to be there to assist us in enforcing this as well. But the messages should be pretty clear to the public. If you are buying something from the NFL that you want to give to your child as a keepsake or something long-term. Buy an NFL product because the garbage that you see up front here is essentially going to fall apart and it's not going to be really worth anything either. And also the message should be pretty clear as well that any profit that these people make, by the time we get to them and seize their items, they're not going to make any profit because they're going to have civil actions taken against them, fines and otherwise.

20:26So this is not a profitable enterprise for anybody to engage in. We're going to be out. There's going to be undercover teams that are going to be going throughout the city trying to catch people that are pirating NFL items. And as Captain Reddy said, we're going to be out there. We're going to arrest you. We're going to seize the items. And you're going to be prosecuted. So the message should be pretty clear that this is not going to be a profitable enterprise for you while you're in our city. I hope everybody enjoys the game, but I hope they enjoy it responsibly and buy your tickets just as you said, as the NFL has said, through reputable sources.

21:03Thank you very much. Thank you everyone. Thank you for our speakers here today. We want to remind fans to be vigilant, don't put yourself at risk, and above all to enjoy the game on Sunday. So thank you. Thank you, everyone. A reminder to do one-on-one interviews a little farther back and to keep questions on topic. Thank you very much.

Source and licence

Recording: File:Operation Team Player Results.webm by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (2017-02-02), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

The transcript is machine speech-to-text by the TidyTools Audio & video transcriber; the summary, key points and chapters were written by Claude from that transcript. Both may contain errors: check the recording before quoting it.