North East Lincolnshire Council’s Trading Standards team working with officers from the UK’s Border Force have seized a shipment of fake Nike Air Max trainers with a street value of £1-million.

Border Force officers stopped a container lorry after it arrived at Immingham docks from Esbjerg in Denmark.

They suspected the contents to be counterfeit and referred the matter to the council’s Trading Standards team.

Officers found 12,444 pairs of imitation Nike Air Max trainers that were thought to have been made in a factory in Lithuania and were destined for an address in South Yorkshire.

They were confiscated, inspected and following further checks with Nike, the Trading Standards team confirmed the trainers were fake. Nike has since paid for the shipment to be destroyed.

It comes as the Trading Standards team is again warning shoppers not to buy counterfeit goods during the countdown to Christmas.

If you’ve been conned into buying fake goods, or know where they are being sold, report it to Trading Standards via Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 03454 040506 or email [email protected].

Neil Clark, community protection manager responsible for Trading Standards at NELC, said: “As this latest seizure shows, the trade in counterfeit goods is a multi-million pound operation that stretches around the globe.

“Working closely with colleagues in the Border Force we’ve removed a valuable shipment of fake trainers from the supply chain, but we know there are plenty of other imitation products out there.

“Criminals exploit the internet and social networking sites to offload bogus goods on unsuspecting shoppers who can’t see for certain what they’re buying.

“It’s a trade that undermines legitimate businesses and puts consumers at risk – don’t fall for it.”