The move comes after cops on the holiday island seized more than 8,300 bogus items estimated to have a street value of nearly £2 million
BRITS caught buying dodgy sunglasses and fake clothes in Majorca are to be hit with massive £700 fines after the island was flooded with bogus goods.
Cops in the Spanish holiday resort are to hammer those caught buying off illegal beach sellers after they seized millions of pounds worth of sham items from crime bosses.
Footage shows police in Palma unpacking boxes packed with handbags, flip flops, sunglasses and copies of top selling brands including Adidas, Hugo Boss, Louis Vuitton, Gucci and Armani.
The video was taken after police dismantled a highly-organised gang distributing material to illegal sellers targeting tourist towns including Magaluf.
The operation involved searching 60 different vehicles and the confiscation of 8,300 items estimated to have a street value of nearly £2 million.
The head of the island’s Citizens Safety Commission, Angelica Pastor, announced the hefty new fines as part of new measures to clean up Majorca's image.
The new clampdowns include the banning of card tricks on the streets, the public consumption of laughing gas and spontaneous street parties known as "botellones".
But without doubt the most controversial measure is that related to the booming illegal street and beach trade - which relies on tourists looking for a bargain.
The tough new measures were in response to calls from genuine retailers for the authorities to do something about their tax-dodging rivals.
Illegal street selling is a controversial issue in Spain and is known as Top Manta after the blankets many traders use to display their dodgy wares.
The blankets usually have a system of strings attached so the whole display can be pulled instantly into a sack if the police are seen to approach.
Groups of street traders carrying sacks and fleeing from the police is a common sight in many large Spanish cities.
Most of the traders are reportedly illegal African immigrants with no other source of income.
Until recently legitimate retailers complained that the street vendors were acting with impunity, but recently there has been a crackdown by the authorities.
Earlier this year there were riots in Madrid after a street trader died from a heart attack after being chased by the police.
The issue of street trading is connected with the wider issue of immigration, and the heated debate as to whether opening up more legal channels for immigration may prevent desperate young men from relying on illegal street trade.
The levying of fines on customers in Majorca represents a news stage in the conflict and appears to mark the determination of the authorities to eradicate the trade altogether.