Norfolk CBP officers seize shipment of clandestinely imported kitchen cabinets from China

NORFOLK, Va. – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized over $120,000 in unmanifested kitchen cabinets in Norfolk on June 23 that were clandestinely imported from China.

CBP officers initially inspected the shipping container on May 18. The contents were manifested as 10 kitchen cabinets, with a declared value of $500, and 691 other items such as metal ornaments, home decorations, storage boxes, and decorative panels. Officers discovered that none of those other declared items were in the container. Instead, officers found 781 cartons of kitchen cabinets.

CBP officers detained the mismanifested shipment, which was destined to an address in Los Angeles, and consulted trade experts at CBP’s Consumer Products and Mass Merchandising Center of Excellence and Expertise.

CBP’s trade experts determined that the cabinets were subject to anti-dumping and countervailing duty laws, which provide for fair competition for U.S. manufacturers on dumped and subsidized imported goods.

CBP officers determined that the kitchen cabinets were clandestinely imported merchandise that were deliberately mismanifested and undervalued to intentionally evade customs officials and duties. Officers seized the kitchen cabinets under 19 USC 1595a(c)(1)(A).

CBP’s trade experts appraised the cabinets at $123,554.

“Customs and Border Protection’s trade enforcement mission is designed to help level the playing field for United States-based businesses against bad actors who attempt to gain advantage by deliberately underpricing their products shipped to the U.S. or who grossly undervalue the cost of those shipments to evade paying a fair duty,” said CBP Area Port Director Keri Brady, Area Port of Norfolk-Newport News. “CBP will continue to support economic fairness, protect domestic industry, and uphold the integrity of U.S. supply chains by targeting unfair trade practices and other schemes designed to cheat the system.”

Additionally, CBP officers seized 5,184 upholstered folding chairs in early June after the Consumer Product Safety Commission determined that the chairs violated the Flammable Fabrics Act. The chairs, which were appraised at about $35,000, were being shipped from China to addresses in Los Angeles. This was not CBP’s first brush with unsafe folding chairs. CBP officers seized another shipment of 2,600 upholstered folding chairs in April for also violating the Flammable Fabrics Act.

CBP is committed to protecting our nation’s economic security by enforcing U.S. trade laws through an aggressive trade enforcement approach. This approach demonstrates how CBP is using all of its authorities to combat trade fraud by detecting high-risk activity, deterring non-compliance, and disrupting fraudulent behavior. CBP will use all methods at its disposal—including increased bonding, enhanced targeting and inspection of high-risk imports, and swift and thorough review of allegations to ensure a fair and competitive trade environment. 

CBP's border security mission is led at our nation’s Ports of Entry by CBP officers and agriculture specialists from the Office of Field Operations. CBP screens international travelers and cargo and searches for illicit narcotics, unreported currency, weapons, counterfeit consumer goods, prohibited agriculture, invasive weeds and pests, and other illicit products that could potentially harm the American public, U.S. businesses, and our nation’s safety and economic vitality.

Learn more at www.CBP.gov.

Follow the Director of CBP’s Baltimore Field Office on X @DFOBaltimore and CBP’s Office of Field Operations on Instagram @cbpfieldops.