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Disorder in Lyon on Friday. Alamy Stock Photo
stolen goods
Ireland and France are linked on sales site Vinted, which is cracking down on any looted goods
Vinted users in Ireland can buy from sellers in France, and may have come across stolen goods looted in France.
SECOND HAND CLOTHES marketplace Vinted has said it is applying a “zero tolerance” approach to French looters listing stolen items for sale.
Weekend demonstrations over soaring prices in France degenerated into some of the worst street violence in recent years, as masked groups attacked law enforcement, broke into public buildings, looted shops and set fire to cars, bicycles and scooters.
French digital minister Anne Le Henanff said items stolen during the unrest are being offered for sale on some online resale platforms, and urged them to take action.
Since Sunday, screenshots have circulated on social media showing online resale listings for items allegedly stolen during the weekend unrest.
Vinted, a Lithuanian marketplace valued at €8 billion, has surged in popularity in recent years.
Vinted users in Ireland can buy from sellers in France, and may have come across stolen goods looted in France.
Since Vinted.ie was introduced in Ireland, the marketplace has been connected to the French community, giving members in France and Ireland access to items and customers in both countries.
The Vinted website provides shipping labels for users to ship between the different nations.
Since Monday, Irish Vinted users can also connect with Belgium and Luxembourg.
Vinted has said it is cooperating “actively with law enforcement and the French authorities” to block listings featuring stolen goods.
“Since this weekend, our teams have acted immediately to identify and remove listings that may involve stolen goods, and we have strengthened monitoring of suspicious listings,” a spokesperson for the platform said, without specifying the scale of the problem.
eBay said it was “not in a position to confirm an increase in listings that may be linked to thefts committed over the weekend”.
The online auction platform said it used “proactive technological tools” to detect the sale of stolen goods.
Le Henanff has summoned representatives of six platforms, including Vinted and eBay, for talks on the issue.
In a post on X, she said the platforms will be required to “cooperate closely with state authorities so that those reselling stolen goods can be prosecuted”.
According to the French commerce ministry, representatives of Vinted, Amazon, eBay, Leboncoin, Meta and TikTok as well as French online retail association Fevad were invited for talks.
With additional reporting from AFP.
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