Ongoing operation targets illicit packages from China
NEW YORK – On a single day this month, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) New York Field Office (NYFO) and its partners identified more than 300 international mail packages as part of Operation Mega Flex XVI that could pose health, safety, or economic threats to U.S. businesses and consumers.
During the operation, CBP NYFO:
- Inspected more than 4,000 shipments;
- Detained 174 shipments for review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration;
- Seized 127 shipments seized for Intellectual Property Rights violations; and
- Seized 18 agriculture products that presented a threat to America’s farms and agriculture interests.
Operation Mega Flex is a CBP-led, interagency effort initiated in July 2019 to address Chinese trade violations and illicit networks in the international mail environment through period enhanced inspections. CBP conducts Mega Flex operations at International Mail Facilities and Express Consignment Hubs nationwide in coordination with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
CBP NYFO plays a pivotal role in implementing Operation Mega Flex. NYFO is home to two International Mail Facilities: John F. Kennedy International Airport, which is the largest such facility in the United States; and the Port of New York/Newark. The two facilities receive more than half of all international mail that arrives in the United States.
“CBP and the New York Field Office will not sit idly by while goods that violate U.S. laws, pose a safety hazard to American consumers, threaten our nation’s economic security, and fund criminal enterprises flow through our international mail,” stated New York Director of Field Operations Troy A. Miller.
Through its nationwide Mega Flex operations, CBP has found that more than 13 percent of targeted shipments contain counterfeit goods or contraband. Since July 2019, CBP has seized more than 4,800 shipments and nearly 2,600 agriculture violations through Mega Flex that posed health, safety, or economic threats to the United States and its people.
CBP remains vigilant in protecting our Nation from all threats, especially those that pose a significant danger to consumers and businesses. If you have any suspicion of or information regarding suspected fraud or illegal trade activity, please report the information to the e-Allegations Online Trade Violation Reporting System or by calling 1-800-BE-ALERT (800-232-5378).
For more information about CBP cargo security and examinations, please visit CBP.gov. More information about CBP agriculture inspections can be found here.
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.