More than US$1m in fake golf gear is seized in raids on mainland factories Six people have been arrested and more than US$1 million worth of counterfeit golf equipment seized in one of the largest anti-piracy raids on the mainland initiated by a coalition of leading US golf-equipment makers. Accompanied by the coalition's mainland agents, police and officials from the Administration for Industry and Commerce simultaneously raided five factories in Jiangmen, Guangdong province, as well as in Putian and Xiamen, in Fujian, on July 14. They seized more than 31,000 counterfeit golf clubs and 84 mould sets used in manufacturing the fake equipment. In one factory in Putian, six people were arrested, including the factory owner and the supervisor. Loo Shih-yann, a partner at law firm Baker & McKenzie, which is advising the coalition, said they could face up to two years in jail. 'The criminal prosecution is significant, because in China, getting the police to prosecute for intellectual property infringement is not common. Police and authorities in China often don't see intellectual property violation as a crime, but a more minor offence like speeding,' he said. Mr Loo said the factories supplied fake golf clubs to a syndicate in Guangzhou for distribution. However, no member of the syndicate was arrested. He said that during the raid in Xiamen, several young men who apparently worked at the factory trailed three of the coalition's agents as they scoured the facility. 'One young man went berserk and smashed things in the factory with a golf club,' he said. 'The young men were taking out their anger at these three agents because they were outsiders from Beijing and Shanghai. The other officials were not harassed because they were locals.' For their safety, the three agents were escorted out of the factory while the other officials continued the raid. 'These raids are significant not just because of the large amount of inventory confiscated,' said Rob Duncanson, a US-based lawyer for the US golf-equipment makers. 'While most previous seizures were primarily finished goods, these raids seized significant amounts of counterfeit golf club manufacturing equipment, reducing the capacity for making counterfeits.' The coalition, formed in October last year, includes Acushnet, Callaway Golf, Cleveland Golf, Nike, Ping and TaylorMade-adidas - six US golf equipment makers that account for 70 per cent of the world market. Mr Duncanson said US Customs had seized more than 430 shipments of fake golf equipment from China in the past few months.