TORFAEN trading standards officers who raided a house in Cwmbran confiscated almost £50,000 worth of counterfeit computer games.

The officers seized 2,000 copies of computer game CDs for several formats and three complete computer systems believed to have been used for their production from a house in the Coed Eva area of Cwmbran in mid-March.

No-one has been charged with any offence.

A trading standards spokesman said: "The selling of counterfeit computer games is quite a serious nationwide problem that is also affecting the Gwent area.

"A lot of people see it as a Robin Hood type of crime, where people are only ripping off big corporations making billions of profits, but it is a crime which also has serious implications for the economy of Torfaen.

"Everyone likes something for nothing, but with every fake copy that is sold for £5 or £10, a shop in Torfaen is losing out on selling an original.

"It is a serious offence which carries a maximum ten-year prison sentence and an unlimited fine.

"I would say that it is a problem that is causing us concern, but we are on top of it at the moment.

"A lot of these criminals sell their fakes in places like pubs or on the Internet, and most of the people who buy them know that they aren't originals.

"It can be very big business for those who do it and they always have top-of-the-range equipment.

"If you're selling 100 CDs a week at between £5 and £10, then it soon adds up." Torfaen trading standards officers have carried out two raids over the last two years, both in Cwmbran, and seized CDs and equipment worth almost £100,000.

Steve Whitehouse, head of Torfaen's trading standards, said: "Although it would be inappropriate to comment on this particular case as our investigations are continuing, counterfeiting is a problem that we have to tackle.

"Torfaen trading standards officers work hard to address these problems and consumers should be able to buy with confidence.

"Faulty goods may be cheap but they are of low quality, and in some cases can be dangerous."