South Korean exporter sentenced for labeling Chinese mattresses as Korean

A man in his 40s has received a suspended prison sentence for falsely labeling approximately 69,000 Chinese-made mattresses as ‘Made in Korea’ to export them to the United States and other locations.

According to the Busan District Court, the individual was sentenced to one year in prison, suspended for two years, and fined 27.9 million won for violating the Foreign Trade Act and the Customs Act. Between November 2023 and August 2024, the defendant allegedly removed ‘Made in China’ labels from mattresses in a warehouse in Gimhae and replaced them with ‘Made in Korea’ stickers.

To avoid detection, the defendant operated six separate export companies under his own and acquaintances' names. Of the modified goods, over 62,000 units were exported to the United States across 84 separate shipments. The court noted that such fraudulent labeling seriously damages the country's international credibility and the integrity of foreign trade.