Counterfeit Nike trainers seized

The counterfeit trainers were being sold on auction site eBay

Thousands of pounds worth of fake Nike trainers which were being sold on auction website eBay have been seized.

Trading Standards officers confiscated the footwear during raids on two addresses in Hertfordshire.

The trainers, found at the homes in Broxbourne and Stevenage, had a retail value of about £25,000.

Counterfeit cosmetics were also seized from a house in Stevenage after three complaints from eBay customers who had suffered allergic reactions.

Two people are being investigated by Hertfordshire Trading Standards and could face prosecution.

The maximum penalty for selling counterfeit goods is 10 years imprisonment.

Richard Smith, of Hertfordshire County Council, said: "People sometimes think that selling fakes doesn't do anyone any harm, but they are wrong - goods may be dangerous, the profits can fund drug dealers and other organised crime and it can put genuine manufacturers out of business."