Cashmere Clothes Made of Rat Fur, Arrests Made

Cashmere Clothes Made of Rat Fur, Arrests Made

Arrests Made in Italian Rat Fur Cashmere Clothing Scam

Police in Italy have arrested more than a dozen people in Rome and Livorno for a scheme in which allegedly fine quality Italian cashmere clothing was produced using rat fur and fur from other unspecified animals.

Police officials who had been investigating the cashmere scam for almost 12 months report that the suspects, all of whom are from China, managed to create a material that resembled cashmere by blending rat fur with viscose and acrylic. The group is also suspected of peddling clothing purported to be silk, pashmina and Merino wool but was also comprised of bogus materials.

Counterfeiting fine quality clothing and other merchandise has long been a very lucrative practice in China, not only for domestic sales but also for export to international markets. News media there report that making and selling fake goods designed to look and feel like their more authentic and expensive counterparts, has become the main source of income for many Chinese who live in poor, rural areas.

Officials in Beijing insist that they are doing everything they can to discourage the counterfeiting practice which has been ruining their reputation with buyers throughout the globe, who now laugh at “made in China” labels.

On The Web:
Italy: ‘Cashmere’ clothes found to contain rat fur
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-26049100