Counterfeit(1) designer clothing(2), medicines(3) and other products are made and sold(4) around the world. American investigators say the counterfeit goods(5) industry is a bigger business than the illegal drug trade(6).
And they say anyone(7) buying such(8) goods could be providing(9) support(10) to criminal activities. Counterfeit goods may look like(11) the real thing(12). But they are copies made without the approval(13) of the business or individual with rights(14) to the original product.
Many fake goods(15) from East Asia(16) enter the United States through(17) the port of Los Angeles, California. People looking for(18) low prices(19) on goods go to a part of downtown(20) Los Angeles called(21) Santee Alley(22).
It is a place(23) where counterfeit goods are sold. Clothing, sunglasses(24), watches(25) and toys(26) fill(27) the many small stores(28) in the area.
Anita Grey has been going to Santee Alley for years. She says she would never buy(29) fake designer products. She says she has seen(30) them there, although not recently(31). Investigator Kris Buckner says there is a reason(32) people do not see counterfeit goods openly(33) displayed(34) at Santee Alley anymore(35): police have repeatedly(36) raided(37) stores that carry(38) fake designer goods.
As a result(39), people who sell them are much more careful(40). Kris Buckner says sellers(41) will offer(42) the fake goods to buyers(43), and take(44) them to a storage(45) area where the goods are hidden(46).
An estimated $500 billion is spent(47) on counterfeit goods every year. Kris Buckner notes that local street gangs, organized crime groups and even(48) terrorists are involved in counterfeiting(49). At the port of Los Angeles, police seize(50) counterfeit clothing, prescription medications(51), electronics and cigarettes(52).
Investigators say large amounts(53) of the fake and stolen(54) designer products come from China and enter American ports in large shipping(55) containers. More than 14 million shipping containers arrive in Los Angeles every year.
Police are able to inspect less than(56) one percent of them.Police say there are ways to tell if(57) a product is counterfeit. Look at(58) the kind of(59) store where the product is sold, and whether(60) the price seems(61) too low(62). If it is(63), it is probably(64)
a fake.For VOA Special English, I’m Mario Ritter. To read, listen and
learn English, go to voaspecialenglish.com. You can also find our
captioned videos at the VOA Learning English channel on YouTube.
(Adapted from a radio program broadcast 13Jul2012)
Vocabulary
1. Counterfeit = falsificado 2. Clothing = vestuario 3. Medicines = medicamentos 4. Sold = vendido 5. Goods = mercadorias 6. illegal drug trade = comercio de drogas ilegais 7. anyone = qualquer um 8. such = tais 9. could be providing = poderia estar fornecendo 10. support = apoio 11. may look like = pode parecer 12. thing = coisa 13. without the approval = sem a aprovação 14. rights = direitos 15. fake goods = mercadorias falsificados 16. East Asia = Asia oriental 17. Through = através 18. looking for = procurando 19. low prices = preços baixos 20. downtown = centro da cidade 21. called = chamado 22. Alley = beco, alameda 23. Place = lugar 24. Sunglasses = óculos de sol 25. Watches = relogios 26. Toys = brinquedos 27. Fill = preencher, encher 28. small stores = lojas pequenas 29. would never buy = nunca compraria 30. has seen = tem visto 31. although not recently = embora não recentemente 32. there is a reason = há uma razão 33. openly = abertamente 34. displayed = exibido, mostrado 35. anymore = mais 36. repeatedly = repetidamente 37. raided = dado batidas (fiscalização) 38. carry = transportar 39. As a result = como resultado 40. much more careful = muito mais cuidadosos 41. sellers = vendedores 42. offer = oferecer 43. buyers = compradores 44. take = levar 45. storage = armazenamento 46. hidden = Escondido, oculto 47. spent = gasto 48. even = até mesmo 49. counterfeiting = falsificação 50. seize = apreender, confiscar 51. prescription medications = medicamentos vendidos com receita 52. cigarettes= cigarros 53. large amounts = grandes quantidades 54. stolen = roubado 55. shipping = envoi, remessa 56. less than = menos que 57. ways to tell if = formas de dizer se 58. Look at = olhe para 59. kind of = tipo de 60. whether = se (ou não) 61. seems = parece 62. too low = baixo demais 63. If it is = se for 64. Probably = provavelmente