Chinese police have raided a factory which allegedly made up to 41,000 fake iPhones.
Nine people have been arrested during police raid.
The operation reportedly involved “hundreds” of workers repackaging second hand smartphone parts as new iPhones for export, with counterfeit phones produced worth 120 million yuan ($19 million).
The factory was discovered on May 14 but was revealed on social media by Beijing’s public security bureau on July 26, according to reports.
The operation was set up in January.
The factory was led by a husband and wife team, on the northern outskirts of Beijing, according to Beijing authorities.
They said they had been alerted to the factory by US authorities which had seized some of the fake phones.
The reports come amid an official Chinese crackdown on counterfeit goods, with authorities pushing companies to trademark their goods.
China has also agreed to work with the US authorities to try to stem the large quantities of fake goods flowing between the two countries.
The discovery of the factory comes four years after fake Apple stores were found in Kunming city, China.
Discovered by blogger BirdAbroad, the fakes were so convincing she said many of the staff themselves were convinced that they were employed by Apple.
