A study commissioned by Rolex and released to the public today has found that between June 2005 and June 2010 fake Rolexes outsold their authentic counterparts.

Fake Rolexes sold for an estimated worldwide total of $888 million during the five-year period. Real Rolexes sold for a total of $881 million. While the margin is slim, it is nonetheless a very alarming number.

It is shocking because of the vast price difference between authentic and fake Rolexes. With real ones usually selling for $3,000 up to $100,000 and more, and fake ones usually selling for anywhere between five dollars and $200, that would mean that about 2,000 times more fake watches were sold in the world than real ones.

“This is a very alarming statistic,” said Werner Klopek, spokesman for Rolex. “Something must be done to curb the sale of these knockoffs.”

While one would be inclined to think that the sale of counterfeit goods—especially those the customer already knows to be fake before they buy it—would be a top priority for police and government agencies around the world, certain police forces just don’t see it that way.

“I don’t really see what all the fuss is about,” said David Forlorn, a police officer in New York City, one of the areas hardest hit by the sale of counterfeit goods. “People come here hoping to buy this fake stuff. They know it’s fake and that’s why they buy it.

“People wanna look good, but they can’t afford it. My wife’s got three fake Louis Vuitton bags. No harm, no foul. It’s not like the people buying the fake stuff are gonna go out and buy the real deals if the fakes go off the market. It’s a different class of people. I would say that it doesn’t even affect the sales of the real ones. So let it be.”

Klopek disagrees with Forlorn.

“Counterfeit watches do indeed affect the sales of our genuine products,” Werner said. “This is because even those well-off enough to buy the real product buy the counterfeits. This way they can have many more items for the same amount of money.”

With absolutely no other kind of crime going on around the world, it’s hard to believe more isn’t being done to crack down on the sale of all counterfeit items. Since we’ve just finished eradicating violence, drugs and theft from our societies, it must only be a matter of time…