Customs officers arrested six people yesterday at a children's learning institute suspected of selling illegally copied books.
Officers seized about 500 full-colour copied books, three computers and three photocopiers, worth about $117,000 in total. They arrested one man and five women, aged 23 to 48, after they found suspected infringing soft copies on the computers.
The institute has four branches, in Tsuen Wan, North Point, Sha Tin and Kowloon Tong, which provide English learning courses for children. Customs had received complaints that it was selling infringing books as course materials at about $25 each, about 60% less than the genuine books' price.
The department's Divisional Commander (Intellectual Property Technology Crime Investigation) Guy Fong today urged people to respect intellectual property rights. Under the Copyright Ordinance, importing, exporting, selling or manufacturing infringing items is punishable by up to four years in jail with a $50,000 fine for each infringing copy, he added.
Call Customs’ 24-hour hotline, 2545 6182, to report suspected infringing activities.