It’s a game of cat and mouse – and knockoff bags.
Illegal vendors are back in full force along Canal Street and scrapping for sidewalk space months after federal authorities carried out a series of raids – but are quick to briefly scatter when NYPD sirens start blaring.
Counterfeit merchants were peddling fake Louis Vuitton handbags and bargaining with customers over other phony accessories this week in Chinatown as surrounding business workers told The Post the black market hawking was as bad as always – or possibly even worse.
Some have cars – where they stuff their inventory — and many vehicles bear out-of-state license plates from Virginia or North Carolina. Some were parked illegally in front of fire hydrants on a recent visit to the illegal market.
“They’re always a problem,” said a gift shop worker Wednesday. “You can’t even walk here.”
“It’s crazier than before the pandemic,” the peeved employee added.
The vendors do get scared off when NYPD cops roll into the area, sometimes as frequently as every couple hours, according to area workers.
They sprinted off and wheeled their goods out of the area even as they tried to close a sale with customers when police vehicles with their sirens blaring arrived around 12:45 p.m. Wednesday.
One under-the-table seller left behind two supposed Vuitton belts behind in the panic.
Another vendor, identified as 46-year-old Yoro Dienge, was hauled away by authorities, police said. The Brooklyn man was charged with second-degree trademark counterfeiting, the department said.
“We are addressing the quality of life that people complain about,” a cop told The Post at the scene.
The local police presence comes after federal immigration enforcement conducted targeted operations to clean up the bustling part of the Big Apple last fall, making several arrests in the process.
But the ICE raids and NYPD enforcement have had little effect, another gift shop worker said.
“When the police is gone, they’re here. They always come back,” he said.
“Police arrest some of them sometimes but a few days later they’re back,” the worker added. “Sometimes they stand in front of the door. We tell them to move out of the way. Sometimes they do, sometimes they argue.”
Alam Mollah, a 65-year-old newsstand owner, told The Post on Tuesday that police can stop by as often as every couple of hours.
“Look, these people can work if they provide money for this country. Since they are living here, they have to help this country because they are making money in this country,” he fumed.
“But the problem is they don’t want to help America. That is the main problem. I pay my taxes and bills but they don’t.”
Bakery worker Jon Lee, 29, also complained “more and more vendors are popping up” and some of the new arrivals “are kind of rude,” causing arguments as everyone battles for a spot on the sidewalk.
“I would say there are a lot more vendors especially on the weekends because it gets quite crowded, making it harder for some of our customers to get inside,” Lee said.
