Arrests were made as Chinese authorities collaborated with UK police and international trademark agencies to seize millions of parcels destined for customers worldwide.

Chinese authorities have taken action against a prominent online sales platform allegedly involved in distributing counterfeit goods. They conducted raids on warehouses containing millions of packages intended for international customers.

Earlier this month, police conducted raids on the Hangzhou office and multiple warehouses belonging to Pandabuy following reported legal action by 16 brands for copyright infringement. According to reports, over 200 public security branch officers, 50 private sector investigators, and local police participated in the operation.

More than 30 individuals were detained, and millions of parcels were seized, with hundreds of thousands of counterfeit brand-name sports shoes among them. The investigation into Pandabuy, initially highlighted by World Trademark Review, reportedly commenced last November with collaboration from City of London police and several intellectual property protection firms, including Corsearch, Rouse, and Rouse’s China-based strategic partner, Lusheng Law Firm.

Reportedly, the UK's involvement stems from the police intellectual property crime unit’s ongoing Operation Ashiko, which targets online intellectual property crime and counterfeit sales.

"This is the first time that collaboration between brand owners, law enforcement, law firms, and service providers across the world has resulted in action against a counterfeit shopping agent of this scale,” Detective Inspector Andrew Masterson told World Trademark Review.

China-based IPP firm Cantoop separately stated that it had alerted police in November, on behalf of unnamed brand owners, and provided 70 investigators to assist with the probe.

“After six months of diligent work, it was discovered that the infringing activities of Pandabuy extended to five cities in China, involving over 2,200 employees, with warehouses spanning 100,000 square meters, equivalent to nearly 20 football stadiums,” Cantoop alleged.

An officer at a Shanghai police economic crime desk confirmed that the raid had taken place but declined to give the Guardian further details, only saying that “not so many” people had been arrested.

Pandabuy is a shopping agent platform, acting as a conduit between sellers and buyers, providing sales and marketing assistance, and shipping processes. It does not make the items but has become famous as a source of cheap and allegedly fake designer goods. Influencers and customers regularly post videos of their Pandabuy “hauls” on TikTok, Discord, and other social media platforms.

Pandabuy’s website claims to have 200,000 customers; however, a major data leak in March reportedly included details for more than 1.3 million customers. Pandabuy apologized for the leak, which it blamed on criminal hackers, and said people’s financial information was not accessed.

Pandabuy has been reached out to for a response. Despite no recent updates on their public alert notices since April 1, an automated email suggests the company is still operating with limitations.

The reply stated, “Recently, our company has encountered legal issues related to our services, as our senior management is actively cooperating with the police investigation. Currently, we are fully collaborating with the relevant authorities to ensure that all our business activities comply with legal regulations … In the meantime, our team and the authorities are taking every necessary measure to protect your rights and ensure data security.”

Some customers awaiting packages have reported receiving conflicting messages from customer service regarding the shipments ordered before the raids. Cantoop’s statement implied that authorities anticipate spending months examining the contents of the seized warehouses.

“All infringing products will be confiscated and stored in warehouses designated by law enforcement agencies,” it stated.

UK police informed Bloomberg that further actions against Pandabuy's UK assets were anticipated, as the company lists a mail drop business center address in London as its headquarters.