Fake DVD Operation Smashed in Edinburgh Raid

A counterfeit DVD operation being run from an Edinburgh city centre flat has been smashed in a raid by police and trading standards officers. The flat in the Marchmont area was believed to be the centre of an illegal operation producing pirate films and computer games. Movies and games with a value of more than £10,000 were seized from the property, along with computer hardware.

The hardware is understood to have been used to create copies of the titles offered for sale. One person has been interviewed about a string of offences, which may have been committed under the Trade Marks Act 1994.

Officials said investigations were continuing and a report may be submitted to the procurator fiscal. The raid followed a tip-off to authorities that counterfeit goods were being sold from the address.

Trading standards officers said around 2000 discs, believed to be computer games, were among the haul. They worked closely with police to mount the operation and close down the counterfeiters.

According to new research, Scotland is the counterfeit capital of Britain, with more people in Scotland have knowingly bought a pirate DVD than anywhere else in the country.