Chicago customs officers seize over 161K counterfeit Forever Stamps coming from China
CHICAGO — More than 161,000 counterfeit U.S. Forever Stamps were seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers stationed in Chicago last weekend.
According to CBP, officers assigned to the Anti-Terrorism Contraband Enforcement Team at the Chicago International Mail Branch stopped eight shipments arriving from China that contained 161,860 counterfeit stamps. If they were genuine, the stamps would have a face value of over $118,000.
Mayor Johnson's office releases video of city's gift inventory room after OIG report
CBP said they seized the stamps for violating trademark laws and were able to identify them as counterfeit based on the low invoice value, routing and the efforts taken to conceal them.
'Counterfeiters only care about making a profit. They don't care about the effect that fake postage has on your ability to send important mail and overall impacts the U.S. economy,' CBP Director of Field Operations LaFonda Sutton-Burke said. 'Our officers and specialists are some of the most highly trained in the nation, and their level of expertise is evident with these seizures. CBP officers were able to identify these very realistic counterfeits and stop them from reaching their destinations.'
According to the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), the sale of counterfeit stamps on social media marketplaces, e-commerce sites via third-party vendors and other websites is growing.
While the print quality of the stamps seized last week was poor, CBP said counterfeit quality is improving, and warned that the average consumer may not be able to tell the difference from an authentic stamp.
Felony charges filed against man accused of killing pregnant woman in Portage Park
USPIS warns that counterfeit stamps are often sold in bulk and at a significant discount, ranging from 25% to 50% off their face value. The steep discounts are often a sign that the stamps are counterfeit.
The postal service said it does not sell stamps at a discount and while some legitimate stamp sellers are able to offer discounts, USPIS says the markdowns are often slight.
Those who use counterfeit stamps knowingly could pay the price. The USPIS said forging or possession of counterfeit postage is a violation of federal law and could result in up to five years in prison.
Student allegedly placed recording device in bathrooms at 2 Highland Park schools, city officials say
Items that are found to be mailed with counterfeit stamps are also subject to being opened and disposed of as the postal service will consider them to be abandoned.
In order to ensure stamps are not counterfeit, USPIS recommends purchasing stamps directly from the U.S. Postal Service in person or online.
Visit the USPIS website for more information on how to report counterfeit stamps and sellers.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox News
3 hours ago
- Fox News
Chinese PhD student from Wuhan arrested smuggling biological materials after deleting electronic evidence: DOJ
A national from the People's Republic of China (PRC) has been arrested after allegedly smuggling biological materials into the U.S. and making false statements to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers about the contents of her packages. The Department of Justice said Chengxuan Han is charged with smuggling goods into the U.S. and making false statements. According to the complaint, Han is a citizen of the PRC who is working on her Ph.D. at the College of Life Science and Technology in the Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan. Han allegedly sent four packages to the U.S. from the PRC in 2024 and 2025, containing concealed biological material. The packages were sent to individuals at a laboratory at the University of Michigan. Han arrived at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport on Sunday on a J1 visa, when CBP officers conducted an inspection. During the inspection, Han allegedly made false statements about the packages and the materials she previously shipped to the U.S. CBP officers also discovered the content of Han's electronic device had been deleted three days before she arrived in the U.S. After the inspection, FBI agents and agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) interviewed Han. During the interview, Han allegedly admitted to sending the packages and revealed they contained material related to round worms. She also allegedly confessed to making false statements to CBP officers during the inspection. "The alleged smuggling of biological materials by this alien from a science and technology university in Wuhan, China—to be used at a University of Michigan laboratory—is part of an alarming pattern that threatens our security," U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon, Jr. said. "The American taxpayer should not be underwriting a PRC-based smuggling operation at one of our crucial public institutions." Han's arrest comes on the same day another Chinese national, 42-year-old Shenghua Wen, pleaded guilty to federal crimes after he exported firearms, ammunition and other military items to North Korea, at the direction of North Korean government officials. Wen, a citizen of the People's Republic of China, came to the U.S. in 2012 on a student visa, where he remained illegally despite his visa expiring in December 2013. Before coming to the U.S., the DOJ said, Wen met with North Korean government officials at a North Korean Embassy in China. At the meeting, the officials directed Wen to obtain goods on behalf of North Korea. Nearly 10 years later, North Korean government officials contacted Wen using an online messaging platform in 2022, instructing him to purchase and smuggle firearms, sensitive technology and ammunition, from the U.S. to North Korea via China. The DOJ said the plea agreement shows Wen shipped at least three containers of firearms from Port of Long Beach in California to China, which then went to North Korea, in 2023. He also took steps to hide that he was shipping firearms to North Korea illegally by falsifying information regarding the contents of the containers. Many of the firearms Wen sent to North Korea were purchased in Texas. He then drove the firearms to California, where he arranged to have them shipped. According to the DOJ, Wen purchased a firearms business in Houston in May 2023 using money from one of his contacts in North Korea. By December 2023, one of the shipments left Port of Long Beach and arrived in Hong Kong in January 2024. It was then transported from Hong Kong to Nampo, North Korea. Wen intended to send another shipment to North Korea containing about 60,000 rounds of 9mm ammunition in September, as requested by North Korean officials, the DOJ said. He also obtained sensitive technology with the intention of sending it to North Korea. The technology, the DOJ said, included a chemical threat identification device and a handheld broadband receiver that detects known, unknown, illegal, disruptive or interfering transmissions. The DOJ added that he also acquired or offered to acquire a civilian airplane engine and thermal imaging system that could be mounted on a drone or some other aircraft for reconnaissance and target identification. North Korean officials wired Wen about $2 million during the operation, to be used for obtaining firearms and other goods. Ultimately, he admitted during the plea agreement that he knew it was illegal to ship the items to North Korea, while also admitting to never having the necessary licenses to ship the ammunition, firearms and sensitive technology to North Korea. Wen also confessed to working at the direction of North Korean officials and did not provide notification to the Attorney General of the U.S. As part of the agreement, Wen faces a maximum prison sentence of 20 years for violating the IEEPA and 10 years for acting as an illegal agent of a foreign government. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 18.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
3 sentenced for pandemic-related unemployment fraud, ID theft
ST. LOUIS – The last in a trio of people who committed COVID-19 pandemic-related unemployment fraud and stole dozens of identities along the way appeared in federal court on Friday to be sentenced. Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Missouri said Daryl Jones Jr., 46, pleaded guilty in February to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and wire fraud. Between June 22, 2020, and July 15, 2020, Jones fraudulently obtained $84,592 in pandemic-related unemployment benefits from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on debit cards issued to him and four other people. Cheryl Johnson, Jones' girlfriend, provided some of the personal identifying information to Jones. She obtained this information by supervising the victims at various St. Louis area businesses. Those businesses were not identified in a federal statement obtained by FOX 2 News. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now On June 3, 2021, Jones submitted fake pay stubs from a phony business to obtain a $31,700 car loan. Jones and Johnson submitted counterfeit insurance cards to accept delivery of the car. The pair used James Whitiker's St. Louis County home to commit their crimes, prosecutors said. Later that month, authorities obtained a court-approved search warrant for the home. They found a notebook containing the names, Social Security numbers, and birthdates of nearly three dozen people, plus separates pieces of paper containing personal info of 18 more people. Investigators also recovered three stolen ID documents, nine Pennsylvania unemployment benefit debit cards, as well as stolen debit and credit cards. Jones was sentenced to 65 months in federal prison and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $116,587. Johnson, 44, pleaded guilty on Feb. 20 to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and wire fraud. She was sentenced on May 22 to 55 months in federal prison and ordered to repair $116,587. Whitiker admitted knowing that Jones and Johnson were using his home to commit fraud and to using two debit cards during the conspiracy. He pleaded guilty in July 2024 to a conspiracy charge and was sentenced this past October to three years in federal prison. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
Community mourns Vineyard man who died during youth camping trip
A candlelight vigil was held Saturday evening in Utah County for the youth leader who died during a church camping trip earlier in the week. Family, friends, and strangers gathered at the Springville High School baseball field to remember Alex Johnson, 38, who was found dead Thursday morning inside his trailer at Wasatch Mountain State Park. Josh Probst, with the Wasatch County Sheriff's Office, said inside the enclosed trailer, deputies found charcoal in a Dutch oven. Investigators theorized that Johnson had used it as a heat source, which caused carbon monoxide to fill the trailer, killing him. The state medical examiner will determine the official cause of death. Those in the large crowd that gathered at the vigil Saturday were able to view photos of Johnson and learn about the things that were important to him. As they held lit candles and comforted one another, friends and family shared memories of the Springville native. The tragedy of Johnson's death has left a deep void in the community, according to family friend Mardi Sifuentes. She organized a similar memorial on Friday in Vineyard, where the Johnson family currently lives. 'Anything anyone ever needed, he was there,' Sifuentes said. 'He just kind of put his footprint in every family. Everyone around here, we just all loved him. It's a huge loss.' As the community grieves, they also remember a man who gave so much of himself to others. According to Sifuentes, Johnson was active in his community through church service. He was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a beloved Little League coach, gymnastics dad and owner of a local landscaping business. He was one of our dearest friends," Sifuentes added. 'It's been a lot of tears, where you think that you don't have any more, but then they just still keep coming. I think there is always the question of: Why does it happen to good people?' Ashley Gollaher, another family friend, echoed the heartbreak felt by many. 'A lot of tears for his wife and kids,' she said. Johnson leaves behind his widow and four children. Contributing: Jordan Ormond
