Several fake Victor Wembanyama rookie cards were among $400,000 worth of counterfeit goods seized in Rochester, N.Y., the U.S. Customs and Border Protection said Thursday.
It is not known how many of the counterfeit Wembanyama Panini Prizm cards were found, but Panini is aware of the seizure, company spokesman Jason Howarth told cllct.
"Authenticity is at the heart of what we do," Howarth said. "We are aware of fake Panini cards seized by U.S. Customs & Border Protection and look forward to working with them on this matter."
One very noticeable difference in the picture of the card provided by the federal agency is that Wembanyama’s photo is significantly blurred. One cannot see a full Nike swoosh on the jersey of the fake card, and the logo for Self Financial, the San Antonio Spurs' jersey sponsor, is also blurry.
The raw Wemby base card sells for about $80. It is currently worth $200 in a PSA 10.
Darren Rovell is the founder of cllct.com and one of the country's leading reporters on the collectible market. He previously worked for ESPN, CNBC and The Action Network.