'Your fake designer handbag funds criminals'

It is a bustling Saturday at Fantasy Island's market in Ingoldmells, Lincolnshire. But my team are no ordinary shoppers, we are undercover, aiming to capture the sale of counterfeit items. In the space of an hour, we film sellers both admitting and denying the illegal trading of fakes. Now, a charity claims counterfeit goods are being produced in the UK and that this is no victimless crime; these cheap price tags carry a much higher cost.

"Is it real?"

Our undercover reporter is buying what looks like a designer bag, unknowingly to the seller, she is secretly recording.

"No," the seller shakes her head and laughs.

The sale of counterfeits in the UK is illegal and can carry a 10-year prison sentence and an unlimited fine. It is not a crime to buy one.

We head to another stall further along the row. It is stocked with what appear to be branded clothes.

This time our reporter picks out a pink hoodie which looks to be Nike.

It cost £10.

The undercover reporter heads to the till to pay.

"Is it proper Nike?" she asks the seller.

"Yeah, yeah," he nods.

He then gestures to the wall behind him, every inch it is filled with some kind of branded clothing.

"All Nike," he says.

A range of bags, clothing and other items were found on sale

The large market is open seven-days-a week and is located underneath the tracks of a gigantic rollercoaster at Fantasy Island. Occasionally, the carriages zoom past, and thrill seekers' screams fill the air.

We delve further in and visit more stalls and purchase three more bags, they all have a variation of an interlocking pattern like the brand Gucci.

One of the sellers' nods and laughs when our reporter remarks the product "is a good knock off". Another, claimed to not know whether the bag was genuine or not.

Each item cost between £10-£20.

The authentic bags can cost thousands.

Designs and names can often be classed as protected intellectual property, counterfeiting involves the illegal production and sale of goods with those protected rights.

A spokesperson from Fantasy Island said: "We take the sale of counterfeit goods extremely seriously and work closely with the relevant enforcement bodies to ensure all appropriate legal protocols are followed."

The CEO of the Anti-Slavery Collective, Sarah Woodcock, described the BBC's undercover footage as "shocking"

We showed our footage and the items we bought to Sarah Woodcock, CEO of the Anti-Slavery Collective, a human rights organisation which highlights forced labour and human exploitation connected to fast fashion.

Ms Woodcock said people who buy fake items, especially younger people, were unaware their purchase was often connected to "a whole constellation of harms".

"Someone is paying the price," she said.

"If they knew that people within the supply chain men, women and children were being exploited to produce, sell and market those goods, they might make a different decision, but the information is just not out there."

The BBC has no way of confirming if the goods we bought are linked to exploitation or organised crime

The BBC purchased four bags from the market

Ms Woodcock assessed the pink hoodie we bought, sold to us as genuine Nike.

"Everything is telling us it's not real, the stitching and the quality of the fabric," she says.

I then show her the undercover footage of the seller claiming it was genuine.

"He obviously is committing a crime, then and there by selling a fake item," she says.

"But I think it's worth noting there might be people who have no choice but to commit a crime, they're in a supply chain that an organised crime group is controlling."

Ms Woodcock also said some fake goods were now being counterfeited close to where they are sold, in the UK, rather than abroad.

"We have seen evidence of items coming into the UK, for example t-shirts, that are just blank, plain t-shirts and then it is within the UK that the fake labels are added."

Peiyi, an experienced brand expert, examined the bags and said they "scream counterfeit"

We also handed our handbags to Peiyi from Lunique London - an independent handbag authenticator with more than 25 years' experience. She has assisted UK authorities and border control officers with investigations.

She asked us not to reveal her last name to protect her work.

A small black bag, with the interlocking design, similar to Gucci's sparks Peiyi's interest.

"It is a decent attempt, I'm being generous here," she says.

"It screams counterfeit."

Peiyi's conclusion was that every bag we bought was fake.

She assessed a large tote bag we bought as being a "like for like copy" of the Marc Jacobs designer version.

She added the three other bags were "inspired" by Gucci.

"A violation, nonetheless," she added.

Action Fraud say counterfeit goods use "the intellectual property of a well-known brand". This could include the unauthorised copying of brand names or trademarked patterns.

A spokesperson from Lincolnshire Trading standards said: "Illegal items are often dangerous, bypassing the product safety regulations that are in place to protect people.

"Counterfeit goods have no place on Lincolnshire's streets."

Courtney Trusswell says she has bought fakes at Fantasy Island's market

Back in Ingoldmells, after our secret filming, I asked the public what they think.

Courtney Trusswell, 25, has a white plastic bag in her hands and says she has knowingly just bought two pairs of "fake Birkenstocks" for £15.

The real version of the shoe costs about £150.

"Bargain," she laughs.

When I ask her about the potential exploitative crimes linked to her shoes, she said: "It's something that I don't really think about, people should."

Another shopper Jackie Dennis, 64, she tells me she too buys fakes.

"You know it's fake don't you? It's not like they're ripping you off," she answers.

I ask her if she considers where it is made.

"No not really, I like to get dressed."

By 2030, trademark company Corsearch estimates the sale of counterfeit goods could reach $1.79 tn.

For now, The Anti-Slavery Collective urge shoppers to resist the temptation of fakes as the crimes attached to them are all too real.

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