Highlander Counterfeit Part 2

[Meinard Hartmann]

JoeCammiso: [00:03:40] Well, I think we started realizing that there was more and more of a problem out there. And I think for the most part, over the years, automakers have been kind of hesitant to accept the fact or acknowledge the fact that there is a problem. But with the advent of e-commerce, it kind of brought the whole thing to light.

Tyler Litchenberger: [00:08:37] I think a lot of people listening are probably people who do stuff to the cars, right? They fix their cars. They want it changed, the do-it-yourselfers, as Kelsey mentioned. Is there a difference between counterfeit, and aftermarket, and the vendors there?

Kelsey Soule: [00:13:53] So, on the law enforcement side, when you guys get pulled into this, you know, the research has been done, they know where this person is, they know that they are going to approach them, for lack of a better term, just, you know-

Jon Ruttencutter: [00:19:45] Yes. My name is Jon Ruttencutter. I recently retired from Homeland Security in January of this year. Prior to that, I started my federal service with the United States Air Force in 1988. And in 1994, I joined the US Customs Service. Of course, that became Homeland Security after 9/11.

Jon Ruttencutter: [00:20:15] Well, my last eight years of my career, I was assigned to the National Intellectual Property Rights Center, which is located in Arlington, Virginia. That center comprises of multiple agencies. And as part of the online security investigations, I was assigned to the counterfeit unit looking after all things counterfeit. My duty included processing counterfeit intelligence as it came to center. I worked a lot with the industry representatives, and I provided guidance to the field agents investigating counterfeit crimes.

Jon Ruttencutter: [00:20:54] Well, I guess, a great day at the office, when you had a piece of intelligence that made it seem like it was nothing at first glance, you take it to the team, and someone at that table recognizes the information that might be linked to a bigger operation or a bigger scheme. You work with the experts from industry. Industry always adds more to the story based on their experiences.

Jon Ruttencutter: [00:23:21] The two individuals, they went as far as to travel to the source country of China and meet with the manufacturers, described what they wanted. Then, they arranged for the importations into the US.

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Aftermarket car parts are a huge business, with hundreds of niche companies selling vehicle- and application- specific upgrades and merchandise. They can be pricey, though, and like anything expensive, there can be a dark side to the business. Broader Performance, a company manufacturing Ford transmission parts, recently found itself on the wrong end of that cycle, as it discovered a counterfeit of one of its products being sold on Summit Racing.

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