Italian police seize counterfeit retro consoles and games worth almost 50 million euros

In Italy, police seized counterfeit retro consoles and games worth almost 50 million euros.

Here's What We Know

According to the police, the consoles were imitations of classic Nintendo, Sega, and Atari consoles that were shipped from China. The devices did not meet EU technical and safety standards.

The games included fakes of many popular titles from the 80s and 90s, such as Super Mario Bros. and Street Fighter.

The seized games were destroyed, and nine Italian citizens were arrested and charged with trafficking in counterfeit goods. If found guilty, they face up to eight years in prison.

"Around 12,000 consoles were seized, illegally storing more than 47 million pirated video games, worth more than 47.5 million euros ($52.5 million)," Alessandro Langella, head of the Turin financial police's economic crime unit, told AFP.

Source: videogameschronicle