Yekaterinburg customs officers seized Minecraft-branded construction sets from sale.

      Today at 17:55, employees of the Yekaterinburg Customs discovered a batch of illegal children's products in one of Yekaterinburg's stores. The raid was conducted as part of control measures on the domestic market, the Ural Customs Administration press service reported on Thursday.

      The individual entrepreneurs visited by customs officers did not have documents confirming the legality of the origin of the toys and the legality of their import into the country. "Inspectors seized from circulation over 330 Chinese toys, possibly illegally moved across the customs border. Additionally, 80 sets of construction kits and toy race cars with signs of counterfeiting have been sent for examination," the customs report states.

      The owners of the goods explained that they did not declare them themselves and purchased them wholesale in Yekaterinburg and Moscow. The question of bringing individuals to administrative responsibility is being considered.

      "The problem of low-quality and possibly health-hazardous children's toys affects many. Illegal manufacturers are guided by the fact that by imitating well-known brands, they receive guaranteed demand. Counterfeit sellers are primarily interested in profit, which is why they purchase cheap fakes that can be sold to consumers at a higher price," noted Eduard Turanov, head of Yekaterinburg Customs.